Maritana cranks up WA Black Swan gold conversion with $25M spend

Maritana Minerals has taken another major step towards joining Western Australia's ranks of gold producers, launching an early works program at its Black Swan processing hub near Kalgoorlie.

The company has engaged GR Engineering Services to deliver the initial program, which includes detailed engineering, earthworks preparation, demolition planning and procurement of critical long-lead equipment needed for the project's planned development. 

Maritana says it’s committed $25M to the project as the company seeks to keep a tight rein on construction costs and scheduling risks ahead of a final investment decision. 

The early works phase is expected to run for 20 weeks and will bridge the gap between completion of front-end engineering and design studies and the start of full construction,  targeted for the September quarter this year. Maritana is aiming to pour first gold from the operation in the second half of 2027. 

The Black Swan plant has a long history as a nickel sulphide concentrator, having been commissioned in 1997 to process ore from the nearby Silver Swan underground mine and the Black Swan open pit mine. 

Acquired by Maritana through its merger with Poseidon Nickel, the operation used conventional crushing, grinding and flotation circuits to produce nickel concentrate before being mothballed during the Global Financial Crisis in 2008.

Maritana’s Black Swan project centres on converting the historic processing facility into a 2.5-million-tonne-per-annum gold carbon-in-leach (CIL) operation capable of treating ore from multiple company-owned gold deposits across the Kalgoorlie region. 

Key components of the Black Swan conversion include installing a CIL circuit and rebuilding the site's semi-autogenous grinding mill.  Other refurbishment or replacement items include new motors, electrical and pumping infrastructure, water and air services, along with other structural and mechanical upgrades.

Maritana Minerals managing director and chief executive officer Grant Haywood said: “We are delighted with the substantial progress made at the Black Swan processing hub. The completion of the FEED study, together with the increase in nameplate throughput above 2.2 Mtpa, materially improves the project’s production capacity. Site activity is ramping up quickly and key approvals are advancing.” 

Major workstreams will include the procurement of key plant components, the awarding of contracts for civil works and the construction of the CIL circuit. 

Maritana has also appointed engineering consultancy Zeal Engineering as its engineer to oversee delivery of the program and provide technical support as the project advances towards construction and commissioning. 

The move follows Maritana's June update, which revealed that engineering studies had increased the planned processing capacity of Black Swan from 2.2 million tonnes per annum to 2.5 million tonnes per annum. 

The upgrade could enhance the project's production profile and support the company's long-term ambition of becoming a 100,000-ounce-per-year gold producer. At the time, the company said it held $229M in cash together with listed investments valued at $11M. 

Separately, Maritana last month kicked off a fully funded 60,000-metre drilling campaign across its extensive Boorara, Coote, Gordons Dam and Crake gold projects. 

The program is designed to upgrade inferred mineral resources to the higher-confidence indicated category and support detailed mine planning for the first ore sources expected to feed the Black Swan hub.

With a growing resource base, a fully funded drilling campaign and now a $25M early works program underway, Maritana appears to be methodically assembling the pieces required to bring Black Swan back to life as a significant new WA gold operation.

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