RANKED: World’s top 10 biggest gold projects

With the US facing its hottest inflation in almost 40 years, all eyes will be on gold in 2022. The precious metal has often played the role of inflation hedge because, unlike paper money, its supply doesn’t change much year to year, growing by about 1.8% for over 100 years.

To provide a snapshot of the potential of the world’s gold supply, MINING.com and sister company Miningintelligence collaborated to provide a ranking of the largest gold projects by resource size.

While the ranking is based on the projects’ total measured and indicated resources, many companies include proven and probable reserves that can be economically extracted in resource estimates.

#1 Pebble

Development status: Preliminary Economic Assessment. Geology: Porphyry, Supergene Copper

Topping the list for a second year is Northern Dynasty Minerals’ Pebble project in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, which contains 106.54 million troy ounces (mozt) of gold.

Pebble has been plagued with controversy and environmental opposition over the years, and it is unclear if the mine will eventually materialize, as the project’s key water permit was formally rejected by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The Biden administration said it will relaunch a process that could permanently protect Bristol Bay from development. The decisions are currently being challenged by Northern Dynasty Minerals, and in October 2021 the company released a preliminary economic assessment.

#2 KSM

Development status: Prefeasibility. Geology: Porphyry, Skarn

Seabridge Gold’s Kerr-Sulphurets Mitchell (KSM) project in British Columbia is in second place with104.64 mozt. The $5.3 billion project hosts four mineral deposits that will be operated as a combined open-pit and underground mine . Late last year, Seabridge announced its plans to reshape KSM by integrating the Snowfield porphyry deposit, acquired from Pretium Resources in December 2020.

#3 Sukhoi Log

Development status: Feasibility. Geology: Orogenic Gold

The Sukhoi Log deposit is in third place with 66.37 mozt, and is said to be the world’s largest by reserves. Russian miner Polyus bought the remaining stake in the giant Sukhoi Log gold deposit in Siberia from its project partner Rostec in a $128 million deal in 2020, and shortly after raised its investment forecast to $3.3 billion for the project that will double its production from 2027.

#4 Norte Abierto

Development status: Preliminary Economic Assessment. Geology: Epithermal, Porphyry, Epithermal – High Sulfidation

The Norte Abierto project in Chile, a joint venture between the world’s two top gold miners, Newmont and Barrick is in fourth place with 54.70 mozt. A Chilean environmental court last year ordered a new evaluation of the project due to concern that heavy traffic and water usage could disrupt life for the nearby indigenous community.

#5 Donlin

Development status: Permitting. Geology: Orogenic Gold

The Donlin project in Alaska is in fifth place with 45.04 mozt. The joint venture between Barrick and Novagold Resources has also seen its share of controversy; in 2020 Novagold announced that it had served short-seller J Capital Research with a civil action lawsuit for defamation after the firm accused managers of “systematically” misleading investors. In December 2021, the owners announced they are working on an updated feasibility study, scheduled for release this year.

#6 Tujuh Bukit

Development status: Prefeasibility. Geology: Porphyry

In sixth place is PT Merdeka’s Tujuh Bukit project with 28.07 mozt. Located in East Java, Indonesia, the project uses conventional open-pit mining with heap leach processing to produce up to 90,000 oz gold a year.

#7 Wafi-Golpu

Development status: Feasibility. Geology: Porphyry, Epithermal – High Sulfidation

Harmony Gold and Newcrest’s joint venture Wafi-Golpu in Papua New Guinea is seventh on the list with 26.71 mozt. Harmony has said the Wafi-Golpu deposit in PNG could support a $9.8 billion mine, but Wafi-Golpu has been delayed over the issue of how much gold Papua New Guinea gets to keep. Having received its environmental permit, JV is continuing to work with the PNG government to progress the permitting of the project.

#8 Treaty Creek

Development status: Preliminary Economic Assessment. Geology: Porphyry, Volcanic Hosted Massive Sulphide

Coming in at number eight is the Treaty Creek project in British Columbia with 24.51 mozt. Tudor Gold has a 60% interest in Treaty Creek; American Creek Resources and Teuton Resources each hold a 20% interest. The 179-sq.-km property within the famed Golden Triangle borders Seabridge Gold’s KSM project to the southwest and Pretium Resources’ Brucejack property to the southeast.

#9 Cascabel

Development status: Prefeasibility. Geology: Porphyry

Solgold’s Cascabel project in Ecuador is in ninth place with 22.44 mozt. Although Ecuador’s Energy Ministry said in 2019 that it “could become the largest underground silver mine, third-largest gold and sixth-largest copper in the world,” the company has delayed the release of the pre-feasibility study. SolGold and shareholder Cornerstone ended a two-year standoff that cost the miner’s chief executive his post, and have agreed to jointly advance the project. 

#10 Casino

Development status: Feasability. Geology: Porphyry

Western Copper’s Casino project in Canada’s Yukon territory rounds out the list with 21.32 mozt. Western Copper, through its Casino Mining subsidiary, completed its 2021 exploration drilling program and is moving forward with the feasibility study.

Download the data at Miningintelligence.