The old Three Mile Hill gold processing facility at historic Coolgardie could be back in production as early as September or October this year.
The Redemption joint venture of Western Australian gold company Focus Minerals Ltd and Canada-based partner Committee Bay Resources Ltd has instigated a feasibility study to re-commence gold production at Coolgardie through the initial treatment of existing low-grade stockpiles.
The feasibility will be carried out along with exploration on the major gold deposits within the joint venture’s recently consolidated 210 square kilometre tenement holding, which has total gold resources of 1.4 million ounces.
That is about half the amount of gold ever produced from the Coolgardie gold belt near Kalgoorlie since 1892.
Perth-based Como Engineers Pty Ltd has been commissioned to carry out the study on the 1.2-million-tonnes-a-year Three Mile Hill plant to generate early cash flow from existing ore stockpiles to fund the establishment of ore sources for a minimum five-year mine life.
A whole-of-field exploration approach to this previously fragmented land package, where other companies have failed before, has yielded good results. New work will include studies into the viability of cut backs on several existing open pits and the development of other major historical deposits, such as Dreadnought, Tindals and the Mount, also close to the processing plant.
The feasibility study and drilling programs are expected to take between 10 and 12 weeks to complete.
Focus Minerals managing director Peter Williams said the early production would help underpin the Redemption joint venture’s objective to again establish a long life gold production project at Coolgardie.
Focus is the largest landholder in the Coolgardie gold belt and Committee Bay has so far spent $2.7 million as part of its three-year, sole-funded $8 million commitment to earn a 50 per cent stake.
In all, $3.2 million has been spent on exploration in just eight months since the joint venture was established.
