Rubicon said its updated preliminary structural interpretation simplified the understanding of the deposit and brought the gold-bearing Riedel vein system to light, which seemed to create more continuity of gold mineralisation within the host rock compared with the 2016 geological model.

The company had shuttered the mine in 2015 shortly after pouring first gold, after discovering the deposit was much more geologically complex than first thought.

It raised C$10.9 million (US$8.5 million) last month in a bought-deal placement at $1.53 per share towards its planned C$15-18 million 2018 programme, which includes test mining, bazooka drilling and a resource update.

President and CEO George Ogilvie said underground development was progressing well and the company was on track to process material from test stopes mid-year.

An updated geological model and resource estimate are expected in the second half of 2018.

Shares in the company have ranged between C$1.13-$1.99 over the past year and rose 1.63% yesterday to $1.25, capitalising it at $73.2 million.