Deutsch, Clayton (University of Alberta)

Purpose

Mineral resources are the core assets of a mining company. The evaluation of mineral resources is associated with significant uncertainty given widely spaced drilling and geological variability at all scales. Techniques for resource estimation have improved over the years, but the calculation of the uncertainty in the resources (tonnage, grade and quantity of metal) has not become commonplace or mature. This project aims to improve the practices of mineral resource uncertainty calculation to improve resource management and decision making for First Majestic Silver Corp., a Canadian mining company. The practices are expected to spread to other Canadian mining companies and beyond.