Open-Pit vs Underground

Operational

Two fundamentally different mining methods with different cost and grade profiles.

Detail

Open-Pit Mining: surface mining, suited to relatively shallow deposits with low grade but large tonnage. Lower cost per tonne, higher strip ratio. Examples: Barrick Nevada Gold Mines, Newmont Boddington. Underground Mining: subsurface, suited to high-grade but smaller deposits. Higher cost per tonne, no stripping required. Examples: Lundin Gold Fruta del Norte (8.68 g/t!), Agnico Macassa. The MAS-Score Geology sub-score accounts for deposit type because it fundamentally shapes economic extractability.

Related Terms

Grade (g/t)
Concentration of the target metal per tonne of ore, measured in grams per tonne.
Tonnage (Mt)
Total quantity of ore in megatonnes (millions of tonnes).
Strip Ratio
Ratio of waste rock to ore that has to be moved in open-pit mining.

See Open-Pit vs Underground in a Mineralis profile.

Four mining companies live indexed with transparent MAS-Scores and clickable source citations.

View Lundin Gold profile →

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