Resolute rises on expanded resource

Perth gold company Resolute Mining has announced a new 1.28 million ounce gold resource for its Buck Reef West deposit near the Ravenswood processing facility in Queensland.

Resolute said 70 per cent of the resource found was in measured and indicated categories comprising 29.4 million tonnes at one gram per tonne gold.

The company has been conducting an investigative drill program at Buck Reef West with the aim of increasing the reserves close to the Ravenswood processing facility.

Resolute said the new addition delivered substantial growth in its total resource base in Australia and, as such, potential for extension to the Ravenswood operation.

“These results significantly add to the substantial resource inventory already identified at Sarsfield and Nolans,” Resolute chief executive officer Peter Sullivan said. 

“Buck Reef West has the potential to provide the Ravenswood operation with a low development risk opportunity to extend gold production at the mine.”

Historically, underground mining at Buck Reef West exploited narrow, high-grade lodes that averaged over 15 grams per tonne gold, according to Resolute.

However recent drilling showed an opportunity for a larger scale open pit that can exploit both the narrow veins and the surrounding broader zones of alteration and veining. 

The company has commenced a scoping study of the Buck Reef West deposit which it plans to complete within the next 12 months.

The objectives of the study include establishing a detailed open pit mine design and schedule for input to financial modeling, while minimising upfront capital expenditure by using existing processing and tailings storage facilities.

Earlier in the week, Resolute announced it was set to become the owner of the Bibiani gold project in Ghana from Noble Mineral Resources. 

Resolute’s share price rose by 5.69 per cent to 68.7 cents at 12:20pm WST.