Mineral Exploration is the official publication of the Association of Mineral Exploration British Columbia.
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/468124
14 S P R I N G 2 0 1 5 Stibbard, a mining engineer, was project superintendent for BHPD (1994– 1995), responsible for leading the design, construction and initial site develop- ment of Ekati. Subsequently, in the role of mining manager (1995–1998) and reporting to Johnson, he was account- able for the design, construction and operation of the 100,000-tonne-per-day mining operation. Rylatt is a mineral processing engineer who has specialized in gravity separation processes and has extensive experience in designing and commissioning processing plants. He was hired by BHPD in 1994 and was responsible for flow sheet devel- opment, equipment selection, detailed design approval and commissioning of the Ekati diamond heavy-media separa- tion and recovery plant. The Ekati development team has created a positive and lasting legacy for Canada's North. In 15 years of continu- ous operation, Ekati has produced over 55 million carats and its contribution to the Northern economy has been signifi- cant both in terms of employment and expenditure. Ekati currently has more than 1,300 full-time employees and contractors, nearly a third of whom are Northerners, and three-quarters of the mine's nearly $6 billion in total expendi- tures have been spent in the North. The Ekati project is a positive and lasting legacy in Canada's North, with significant economic impact both in terms of employment and revenue gen- eration. The Ekati Mine produces nearly three per cent of the current world rough diamond output by weight and five per cent by value. Colin Spence Award Excellence in Global Mineral Exploration RECIPIENTS: DUANE AND MORGAN POLIQUIN Father-and-son team Duane and Morgan Poliquin are being recognized particu- larly for their roles in the recent discovery and advancement of the Ixtaca gold-silver deposit for Almaden Minerals Ltd. at its Tuligtic property in eastern Mexico. This is one of the most significant green- field discoveries of recent times, follow- ing several years of diligent research and exploration efforts focused on an under- explored area. A lmaden's 100-per-cent-owned, 14,000-hectare Tuligtic project was identified and acquired by staking dur- ing the company's 2001 regional explo- ration program, designed and executed by Morgan and Duane. It is situated in Puebla State, 150 kilometres east of Mexico City and 120 kilometres south- east of the Pachuca Deposit, which has a recorded historic production of seven million ounces of gold and 1.4 billion ounces of silver. Within the large Tuligtic claim block, subsequent Almaden fieldwork identified a five-hectare area of intensely altered rocks containing several prospective targets, including the Ixtaca Zone. An initial hole drilled in August 2010 to test beneath the altered volcanic ash and sin- ter unit returned a 302-metre intersec- tion of epithermal style mineralization grading one gram per tonne gold and 48 grams per tonne silver with mul- tiple high-grade intervals including 1.67 metres of 60.7 grams per tonne gold and 2,122 grams per tonne silver. Since that time, systematic aggressive