Technical Report for the San Bartolomé Mine Potosí, Bolivia
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TECHNICAL REPORT FOR THE SAN BARTOLOMÉ MINE POTOSÍ, BOLIVIA NI 43-101 Technical Report Effective Date: December 31, 2014 Filing Date: February 18, 2015 Prepared by: W. David Tyler, RM SME Raul Mondragon, RM SME San Bartolomé Project Potosí, Bolivia NI 43-101 Technical Report February 18, 2015 Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information This Technical Report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933 and the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and the equivalent under Canadian securities laws), that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor created by such sections. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding Coeur Mining, Inc.’s (Coeur’s) expectations for the San Bartolomé Mine, including estimated capital requirements, expected production, cash costs and rates of return; mineral reserve and resource estimates; estimates of silver grades, expected financial returns and costs; and other statements that are not historical facts. We have tried to identify these forward- looking statements by using words such as “may,” “might”, “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements address activities, events or developments that Coeur expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, and are based on information currently available. Although Coeur believes that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove correct. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, among others, reclamation activities; changes in Project parameters as mine and process plans continue to be refined, variations in ore reserves, grade or recovery rates; geotechnical considerations; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; shipping delays and regulations; risks that Coeur’s exploration and property advancement efforts will not be successful; risks relating to fluctuations in the price of silver; the inherently hazardous nature of mining-related activities; uncertainties concerning reserve and resource estimates; uncertainties relating to obtaining approvals and permits from governmental regulatory authorities; and availability and timing of capital for financing exploration and development activities, including uncertainty of being able to raise capital on favorable terms or at all; as well as those factors discussed in Coeur’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) including Coeur’s latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and its other SEC filings (and Canadian filings). Coeur does not intend to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. San Bartolomé Mine NI 43-101 Technical Report Page 2 of 156 San Bartolomé Project Potosí, Bolivia NI 43-101 Technical Report February 18, 2015 Cautionary Note to U.S. Readers concerning estimates of Measured, Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources Information concerning the properties and operations of Coeur has been prepared in accordance with Canadian standards under applicable Canadian securities laws, and may not be comparable to similar information for United States companies. The terms “Mineral Resource”, “Measured Mineral Resource”, “Indicated Mineral Resource” and “Inferred Mineral Resource” used in this report are Canadian mining terms as defined in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 (“NI 43-101”) under guidelines set out in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (“CIM”) Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves adopted by the CIM Council on May 24, 2014 While the terms “Mineral Resource”, “Measured Mineral Resource”, “Indicated Mineral Resource” and “Inferred Mineral Resource” are recognized and required by Canadian securities regulations, they are not defined terms under standards of the SEC. Under United States standards, mineralization may not be classified as a “Reserve” unless the determination has been made that the mineralization could be economically and legally produced or extracted at the time the Reserve calculation is made. As such, certain information contained in this report concerning descriptions of mineralization and resources under Canadian standards is not comparable to similar information made public by United States companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of the SEC. An “Inferred Mineral Resource” has a great amount of uncertainty as to its existence and as to its economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an “Inferred Mineral Resource” will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian rules, estimates of Inferred Mineral Resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies. Readers are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of Measured or Indicated Resources will ever be converted into Mineral Reserves. Readers are also cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an “Inferred Mineral Resource” exists, or is economically or legally mineable. In addition, the definitions of “Proven Mineral Reserves” and “Probable Mineral Reserves” under CIM standards differ in certain respects from the standards of the SEC. Currency All dollar amounts in this Technical Report are expressed in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise indicated. San Bartolomé Mine NI 43-101 Technical Report Page 3 of 156 San Bartolomé Project Potosí, Bolivia NI 43-101 Technical Report February 18, 2015 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. SUMMARY ................................................................................................................ 10 1.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................. 10 1.2. Location and Property Description .......................................................................... 10 1.3. Ownership, and Mineral Tenure ............................................................................. 10 1.4. Geology and Mineralization .................................................................................... 12 1.5. Exploration, Drilling, and Sampling ......................................................................... 13 1.6. Mining ..................................................................................................................... 14 1.7. Processing .............................................................................................................. 14 1.8. Infrastructure ........................................................................................................... 15 1.9. Recovery Estimates ................................................................................................ 15 1.10. Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimation ............................................ 15 1.11. Economic Analysis .............................................................................................. 18 1.12. Conclusions ......................................................................................................... 19 1.13. Recommendations .............................................................................................. 19 2. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 20 2.1. Qualified Persons ................................................................................................... 20 2.2. Site Visits and Scope of Personal Inspection ......................................................... 20 2.3. Effective Dates ........................................................................................................ 21 2.4. Information Sources and References ..................................................................... 21 2.5. Previous Technical Reports .................................................................................... 22 3. RELIANCE ON OTHER EXPERTS ........................................................................... 23 4. PROPERTY DESCRIPTION AND LOCATION ......................................................... 24 4.1. Location .................................................................................................................. 24 4.2. Ownership History .................................................................................................. 25 4.3. Mineral Tenure ........................................................................................................ 25 4.4. Agreements with the Mining Cooperatives ............................................................. 29 4.5. Extension Areas and San Miguel Mill Tailings ........................................................ 31 4.6. Plahipo .................................................................................................................... 31 4.7. Dumps not included in the Plahipo Lease .............................................................. 32 4.8. Sulfide Dumps ........................................................................................................ 32 4.9. Access and Ownership Risks ................................................................................. 32 4.10. Environmental Liabilities ....................................................................................