Javelin Minerals has cleared the decks by locking in the final piece of the puzzle at its Eureka gold project in Western Australia’s Eastern Goldfields after signing a landmark agreement with the Marlinyu Ghoorlie traditional owners.
The deal covers all of the company’s tenements sitting inside the Marlinyu Ghoorlie’s ground, including both its Eureka and Javelin’s nearby Coogee project, effectively paving the way for mining to kick off in the June quarter of next year.
Javelin says the deal locks in a clear approvals runway by protecting Aboriginal cultural heritage and settling compensation obligations upfront. It also lays the foundation for jobs, training and business opportunities for the Marlinyu Ghoorlie people.
The news comes just weeks after the company inked a mining contract with Goldfields mining services player MEGA Resources. That deal covers mining, project financing and haulage services across its Eureka project.
MEGA is also footing the entire operational bill, saving Javelin the need to run back to the equity markets ahead of production - a welcome rarity for a junior gold developer in any market cycle.
At the back end, Javelin will collect 50 per cent of the profits from gold sales, including $250,000 monthly pre-payments once revenue begins. And should drilling uncover additional ounces beyond the current plan, Javelin’s profit share rises to 70 per cent.
To squeeze the most out of the mine, the company has already lodged a new mining lease application that will significantly expand the permitted area around the existing Eureka pit. This allows for a deeper, wider cutback and more efficient recovery of the resource sitting beneath the historic workings.
The current Eureka mine plan is underpinned by an indicated resource of 1.36 million tonnes at 1.8 grams per tonne gold (g/t) for 78,678 ounces. The broader resource weighs in at 2.04 million tonnes at 1.69 g/t for a total of 110,687 ounces, with 71 per cent of the ounces sitting in the higher confidence indicated category.
A new drilling program is scheduled to fire up shortly, targeting down-plunge extensions and fresh high-grade zones under and around the pit to boost both mine life and the scale of production.
Javelin Minerals executive chairman Brett Mitchell said: “The Land Use Agreement with Marlinyu Ghoorlie is an outstanding result for both parties and we look forward to working with them to deliver substantial benefits for all our stakeholders.”
Javelin is also deep in negotiations with nearby third-party mill operators to secure a binding ore purchase agreement - the last major operational link between the pit and the refinery gate.
As the pieces snap into place, Eureka is shaping up as the newest gold start-up in the Kalgoorlie region. If drilling delivers even a modest resource bump, Javelin’s push to early cashflow could snowball into a much bigger future.
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By James Pearson
