Texas Silver offers golden hope
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Tuesday, 9 November, 1999 - 21:00
The Texas Silver project has the potential to become a major operation, according to Macmin NL managing director Bob McNeil.
He believes that even though relatively small at this stage of development, the economics of the project are robust.
“At an estimated capital cost of $4.5 million, the heap and dump leach project, at a projected average operating cost over three years of $15/tonne of ore, gives a net cash flow to Macmin of $14 million,” he said.
The Texas project is located seven kilometres east of the town of Texas in Queensland, about 220km from Brisbane.
The project will commence on a relatively small probable ore reserve of 8.6 million ounces of contained silver, which is less than one quarter of an inferred resource of 35 million ozs silver.
A feasibility study should be completed by early 2000. A major components of the study is a 4000 metres to 5000m non-core and 500m core drilling programme, with the objectives of increasing the ore reserve, converting part of the probable ore to proven ore, locating additional ore – in particular high grade silver ore – and detailing the initial benches in the proposed pit.
Bench scale column leach metallurgical testing suggests silver recoveries of between 72 per cent and 86 per cent are likely from the heap leach circuit.
Mr McNeil said the proposed mine and heap leach extraction area is wholly within freehold land and not subject to native title.
He said the key to the attractive economics, including a rapid pay back of capital, is a near surface high grade resource zone of 360,000 tonnes grading at 240 grams/tonne silver and 0.37g/t gold (equivalent to a gold grade of 4.8g/t gold).
This zone reported drill intersections such as 10m at 1,158g/t silver from 10m depth and 14m at 358g/t silver from 28m depth.
The heap and dump leach extraction process for silver is well established in the United States where Coeur d’Alene Mines Corporation and Nerco Minerals Co have operated profitable heap leach silver mines.
He believes that even though relatively small at this stage of development, the economics of the project are robust.
“At an estimated capital cost of $4.5 million, the heap and dump leach project, at a projected average operating cost over three years of $15/tonne of ore, gives a net cash flow to Macmin of $14 million,” he said.
The Texas project is located seven kilometres east of the town of Texas in Queensland, about 220km from Brisbane.
The project will commence on a relatively small probable ore reserve of 8.6 million ounces of contained silver, which is less than one quarter of an inferred resource of 35 million ozs silver.
A feasibility study should be completed by early 2000. A major components of the study is a 4000 metres to 5000m non-core and 500m core drilling programme, with the objectives of increasing the ore reserve, converting part of the probable ore to proven ore, locating additional ore – in particular high grade silver ore – and detailing the initial benches in the proposed pit.
Bench scale column leach metallurgical testing suggests silver recoveries of between 72 per cent and 86 per cent are likely from the heap leach circuit.
Mr McNeil said the proposed mine and heap leach extraction area is wholly within freehold land and not subject to native title.
He said the key to the attractive economics, including a rapid pay back of capital, is a near surface high grade resource zone of 360,000 tonnes grading at 240 grams/tonne silver and 0.37g/t gold (equivalent to a gold grade of 4.8g/t gold).
This zone reported drill intersections such as 10m at 1,158g/t silver from 10m depth and 14m at 358g/t silver from 28m depth.
The heap and dump leach extraction process for silver is well established in the United States where Coeur d’Alene Mines Corporation and Nerco Minerals Co have operated profitable heap leach silver mines.