Looking to strengthen the gold mine platform it is building in Nunavut, Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. is investing roughly US$33 million into exploring its three main assets in the Canadian territory – Meliadine mine, Meadowbank Complex, and the recently acquired Hope Bay mine.

This robust investment in Nunavut is part of US$163 million of exploration the company has budgeted for all of its assets, which is substantially higher than the US$113 million invested in exploration during 2020 and a record for the company.

"The 2021 exploration program is the most ambitious in Agnico Eagle's 64-year history, as we investigate the full potential of existing operations and key projects in the company's pipeline," said Agnico Eagle Mines CEO Sean Boyd.

Upgrading, expanding Meliadine

Roughly US$9.8 million of Agnico's 2021 exploration budget is being invested into Meliadine, a gold mine about 25 kilometers (16 miles) north of the community of Rankin Inlet.

Going into 2021, Meliadine hosted 21.3 million metric tons of proven and probable reserves averaging grading 5.89 g/t (4 million ounces gold) mostly at underground depth, along with 18.8 million metric tons of measured and indicated resources averaging 3.53 g/t (2.1 million oz gold), and 12.3 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 5.82 g/t (2.3 million oz gold).

These reserves and resources are found in seven gold deposits, six of which are part of the current mine plan. Tiriganiaq is the largest of the deposits with a strike length of approximately 3,000 meters at surface and a known depth of 812 meters.

Roughly US$8.3 million of the 2021 exploration budget for Meliadine is being invested into 44,000 meters of capitalized drilling with a focus on upgrading resources within the Tiriganiaq, Normeg, and Wesmeg deposits, as well as exploration drilling near the Tiriganiaq, Wesmeg, Pump, F-Zone, and Wolf deposits.

The remaining US$1.5 million is being invested in around 7,000 meters of regional exploration drilling across the 98,222-hectare (242,712 acres) Meliadine property that covers an 80-kilometer (50 miles) greenstone belt in Nunavut's Kivalliq District.

Agnico says conversion and exploration drilling carried out over the first nine months of this year continues to confirm and expand upon high-grade gold mineralization at the Tiriganiaq, Wesmeg, and Normeg deposits.

At Tiriganiaq, exploration hole M21-2933 cut 7.9 meters averaging 3.6 g/t gold in the deepest and westernmost portion of the main oreshoot, suggesting the potential for additional gold mineralization along trend at depth.

Highlights from drilling at Normeg include hole M21-3285, which cut 3.1 meters averaging 10.6 g/t gold at the edge of the mineral resource; and hole ML250-9325-D4, which cut 4.1 meters averaging 8.3 g/t gold in an area of inferred mineral resources.

At Wesmeg, hole M20-2966 cut 8.8 meters averaging 7 g/t gold at the edge of the mineral resource; and hole M21-3285 cut 5.2 meters averaging 6.8 g/t gold in an area already categorized as inferred mineral resources.

The regional exploration at Meliadine includes continued drilling to test targets around the Discovery deposit, including the Itiqlak-Aquarius target about 15 kilometers (nine miles) southeast of the mine.

One hole drilled early in the 2021 program at Itiqlak-Aquarius cut 3.5 meters averaging 21.7 g/t gold in the North Limb of a folded banded iron formation.

The 16 holes drilled at Itiqlak-Aquarius focused on defining shallow mineralized shoots in the South Limb and the thickening and extensions of the banded iron formation along the fold hinge. Additional drilling in the South Limb at depth intercepted mineralization in the structurally higher North Limb, North Hinge, and East Limb banded iron formations, providing zone stacking potential.

Highlights from recent results from this drilling at Itiqlak-Aquarius include hole M21-3270, which cut 4.2 meters averaging 3.6 g/t and hole M21-3290, which cut 4.2 meters averaging 5.4 g/t.

Assays are pending for drilling in the South Limb but Agnico reports that results from the last five drill holes within the fold hinge area are all displaying favorable geology with visible gold in quartz veining within the iron formation units.

At and around Amaruq

Agnico is investing another US$7 million for 34,900 meters of resource upgrade and exploration drilling at its Meadowbank Complex about 290 kilometers (180 miles) northwest of Meliadine.

The Meadowbank Complex includes the Meadowbank mine, which delivered ore to the Meadowbank mill from 2010 through 2019, and Amaruq, a satellite deposit about 50 kilometers (31 miles) to the northwest that began delivering ore to the Meadowbank mill during 2019.

Most of the 2021 drilling was carried out at Amaruq, which hosts the Whale Tail gold deposit, VR zone, Mammoth zone, and several other gold exploration targets.

Going into 2021, the 118,862-hectare (293,714 acres) Amaruq property hosted 19.9 million metric tons of open pit proven and probable mineral reserves averaging 3.64 g/t (2.3 million oz) gold; 3.3 million metric tons of underground probable mineral reserves averaging 5.29 g/t (564,000 oz) gold; along with substantial open pit and underground indicated and inferred mineral resources.

The 2021 exploration drilling at Amaruq focused on the area between the Whale Tail and IVR underground mineral resources.

Highlights from this drilling include 2.6 meters averaging 26.6 g/t gold in hole AMQ21-2565 and 5.4 meters averaging 3.7 g/t gold in AMQ21-2608.

Agnico says these intercepts demonstrate the potential for mineral resources to be discovered between Whale Tail and IVR near the planned underground mine infrastructure.

A follow-up program in this area in 2022 will aim to increase confidence in the continuity of the underground gold mineralization between Whale Tail and IVR, as well as to extend any inferred mineral resources developed during this year's program.

The Toronto-based gold miner also drilled 12 exploration holes during the first nine months of 2021 at Mammoth, a zone about 600 meters west of the Whale Tail pit, to test for the western extension of underground mineral resources.

Highlights from recent drilling at Mammoth include:

• 36.4 meters averaging 4.4 g/t gold in hole AMQ21-2603, which targeted the western extension of the zone at depth.

• 4.1 meters averaging 3.5 g/t gold and three meters of 3.7 g/t gold in AMQ21-2615, which was drilled 60 meters west of AMQ21-2603. Agnico says these intercepts located only 2.9 meters apart, confirm the thickness of Mammoth zone.

• 4.7 meters averaging 5.1 g/t gold in a newly discovered area of mineralization approximately 40 meters north of Mammoth zone.

Agnico says a follow-up drill program is currently underway at Mammoth zone with the focus on improving understanding of the mineralization geometry as well as extending known mineralization.

Over the first nine months of 2021, the company also drilled 54 holes at regional exploration targets around Meadowbank and Amaruq.

This includes nine holes drilled at Greyhound, a property about 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Meadowbank that Agnico is exploring under a joint venture with Gold79 Mines Ltd. This year's drilling at Greyhound targeted the Dingo, Aura, and Outstanding Lake prospects, where polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulfide mineralization has been identified in boulders at the surface.

Exploring its new Hope Bay

At US$16.2 million, Agnico's largest drill program in Nunavut this year is being carried out at its new Hope Bay Mine property.

In February, Agnico gained ownership of Hope Bay through the acquisition of TMAC Resources Inc.

As a result of more than 1 million meters of drilling completed prior to Agnico's acquisition, Hope Bay hosts 1.6 million metric tons of historical measured mineral resource averaging 9.5 g/t gold (481,000 oz gold), 20.2 million metric tons of historical indicated mineral resource averaging 7.2 g/t gold (4.7 million oz gold), and 10.9 million metric tons of historical inferred mineral resource averaging 6.1 g/t gold (2.1 million oz gold), as of the end of 2019.

Agnico sees tremendous exploration potential across the 181,677-hectare (448,933 acres) Hope Bay property, which encompasses two 80-kilometer- (50 miles) long greenstone belts (Hope Bay and Elu).

The company is investigating this potential with an investment of US$5.5 million for approximately 29,800 meters of delineation drilling at Doris, the area currently being mined at Hope Bay, and another US$10.7 million for roughly 39,800 meters of exploration drilling around Doris, Madrid, and other regional targets along the Hope Bay greenstone belt.

Doris, which lies at the northern end of the Hope Bay greenstone belt, hosts all of Hope Bay's mining, processing, and camp facilities. The Madrid deposit is located eight kilometers (five miles) south of the Doris mine and can be accessed year-round by road. The Boston deposit, which is about 55 kilometers (34 miles) south of Doris, has its own exploration camp and ramp infrastructure for underground exploration.

So far this year, more than 71,500 meters of drilling have been completed at Doris and Madrid, which tops the 69,600 meters originally slated for this year.

Highlights from recent drilling at Doris include:

• 3.3 meters averaging 21.4 g/t gold in hole DCN21-50284 (West Valley Zone).

• 3.8 meters averaging 17.7 g/t gold in hole DBE21-50381(BTD Extension Zone).

• 5.2 meters averaging 16 g/t gold in hole DBE21-50410 (BTD Extension Zone).

• 8.6 meters averaging 13.5 g/t gold in hole DCN21-50413 (DSN Zone).

• 12.6 meters averaging 12.9 g/t gold in hole DCN21-50418 (DSN Zone).

• Eight meters averaging 19.1 g/t gold in hole DCN21-50441 (West Valley Zone).

• 3.2 meters averaging 32 g/t gold in hole DBE21-50469 (BTD Extension Zone).

• 13.6 meters averaging 9.6 g/t gold in hole DCN21-50475 (DSN Zone).

An exploration drift currently being developed to the West Valley Zone will be used to target the gap in the West Valley between the dike and the previously defined West Valley mineral resources to the north.

Agnico also believes there is good potential to extend the deposit along strike to the north and to add to the mineral resources at Doris beneath a diabase dike with continued drilling on the BTD Extension, BTD Connector/West Valley, and BTD Central zones.

In addition to the exploration in and around Doris, Agnico is carrying out drilling in the shallow portion of the Madrid deposit to test the area around the ramp portal in the Naartok West Zone to delineate the upper reaches of the deposit while investigating potential parallel structures in the hanging wall and footwall of the main ore zone.

This drilling has confirmed grade and thickness continuity of the Naartok West Main Zone with intersections that include 7.4 meters averaging 7.9 g/t gold in hole HBM21-007. Agnico says the Naartok West Zone remains open along strike and at depth, with further drilling planned to test the extent of the zone.

Exploration in the western Naartok West area has also resulted in the discovery of a new zone of north-trending stacked splays. Highlights from drilling in this newly discovered zone include 5.9 meters averaging 10.3 g/t gold and 8.3 meters averaging 6.6 g/t gold.

This new zone remains open in all directions and drilling is ongoing.

This year's drilling has also confirmed an extension of the Naartok East Zone further north with six meters of 11 g/t gold cut in hole HBM21-024 and 13.7 meters of 8 g/t gold in hole HBM21-010. The Naartok East Zone remains open to the north along strike and at depth, with drilling planned to further test the extent of the zone.

Agnico says there is also excellent exploration potential at the Boston deposit and on a regional scale within the Hope Bay and Elu greenstone belts.

The majority of historical and recent exploration has focused on defining and expanding the known deposits. However, more than 90 regional exploration targets have been defined by surface mapping and sampling, and geophysical and geochemical surveys – offering Agnico a lot of ground to explore on its new Hope Bay property.

TMAC Resources Inc.

The Doris Mine area on Agnico Eagle's recently acquired Hope Bay, a project that covers two highly prospective greenstone belts in the Kitikmeot region of Nunavut.

Author Bio

Shane Lasley, Publisher

Over his more than 16 years of covering mining and mineral exploration, Shane has become renowned for his ability to report on the sector in a way that is technically sound enough to inform industry insiders while being easy to understand by a wider audience.

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