Hudbay Minerals (TSX:HBM) has released an updated reserve estimate and new mine plan for its Snow Lake operations in Manitoba, Canada, resulting in a 60% increase in expected life-of-mine gold production.
The Canadian miner now estimates Snow Lake holds 2 million ounces (Moz) of gold in reserves, supporting an extended mine life to 2043.
The estimate includes approximately 124,000 ounces of new reserves since Hudbay’s March 2026 update, extending operations by a further two years.
Altogether, Hudbay has added around 510,000 ounces of gold to Snow Lake’s reserves this year, extending its mine life by six years.
Snow Lake production rises
With the additional reserves, Snow Lake is now expected to deliver a total 2.8Moz of gold during its operating life.
This represents a 60% increase from the 1.8Moz outlined in Hudbay’s 2021 technical report.
Hudbay also expects gold production between 2026 and 2030 to be 37% higher than previously outlined.
Over the five-year period, Snow Lake is expected to produce an average of 185,000 ounces of gold annually. This production will be supported by several optimisation initiatives, including stronger throughput at the New Britannia mill and higher gold recoveries from the Stall concentrator.
CEO Peter Kukielski says the enhanced mine plan demonstrates “the incredible value” Hudbay has generated through successful exploration and continuous improvement initiatives.
Transition into gold producer
Snow Lake is currently anchored by the Lalor mine, which began as a zinc-rich operation before Hudbay shifted its focus towards gold.
The transition was supported by Hudbay’s acquisition and refurbishment of the idled New Britannia gold mill. Bringing the mill back into operation allowed the company to process gold-rich ore separately and maximise recoveries rather than routing all ore through the Stall base metals concentrator.
“Transitioning this operation from a zinc-rich operation to a leading Canadian gold operation over the last five years has been transformative for Hudbay and we look forward to sustainable production in the decades ahead,” Kukielski says.
In addition to Lalor, the Snow Lake operations include the 1901 zinc-gold deposit and several satellite deposits. Some of these assets were acquired through Hudbay’s 2023 purchase of Rockcliff Metals.
Hudbay Minerals is a copper-focused critical minerals mining company with three long-life operations and a pipeline of copper growth projects in Canada, Peru, and the US.
Write to Jackson Chen at Mining.com.au
Image: Hudbay Minerals
