China Gold International (HKEX: 02099) has announced the completion of an updated mineral resource and reserve estimate for its Jiama copper-polymetallic mine project located in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, along with a technical report compliant with NI 43-101 standards.

The measured mineral resources have surged to 623 million tonnes, marking a staggering 523% increase from the previous 100 million tonnes. The total metal content has seen a substantial rise.

Compared to the resource estimate by Mining One in 2012, the measured and indicated resources now stand at 1.335 billion tonnes. This includes an increase of 3 million tonnes of copper, 7.12 million ounces of gold, and 247.23 million ounces of silver. Inferred resources are now 454.7 million tonnes, containing an additional 1.74 million tonnes of copper, 2.72 million ounces of gold, and 116.3 million ounces of silver.

The updated measured resources boast an average grade of 0.69% Cu or 1.12% CuEq, while the updated inferred resources average 0.65% Cu or 1.09% CuEq, reflecting a significantly expanded resource base of high quality.

The total mineral reserves have grown to 665 million tonnes, a 51% increase from 440 million tonnes. While the current open-pit ore reserves have decreased to 110 million tonnes from 240 million tonnes in the 2013 Mining One estimate, they are still sufficient to support the existing two open-pit operations for over 20 years at current mining capacity.

Underground ore reserves have seen a dramatic jump from 200 million tonnes in 2013 to 550 million tonnes. This includes an increase in contained copper metal from 1.47 million tonnes to 5.20 million tonnes, molybdenum from 100,000 tonnes to 220,000 tonnes, gold from 2 million ounces to 8 million ounces, and silver from 88 million ounces to 354 million ounces.

The updated mineral reserves have an average grade of 0.86% Cu or 1.40% CuEq, laying a solid foundation for future production expansion and extension of the mine's operational life.

The first phase of the Jiama project, comprising the Tonglushan and Niumatang open pits, commenced commercial operations in 2010. The second-phase development and expansion project was completed in 2018. The project currently maintains a daily processing capacity of approximately 34,000 tonnes and is expected to return to its designed capacity of 50,000 tonnes per day by 2028.