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KBL updates Mineral Hill resource estimate
KBL, formerly Kimberley Metals, has updated
its resource estimate at the Southern Ore
Zone of the Mineral Hill Gold-Copper Project
to a JORC-compliant 5.2 million tonnes containing
222,000 ounces of gold, 61,000
tonnes of copper and 6 million ounces of silver.
This represents a 38% increase in contained
copper, 77% increase in estimated contained
gold and 12% increase in contained silver from
the September 2011 estimate.
KBL’s executive chairman Jim Wall says,
“The Southern Ore Zone resource adds significant
upside to the Mineral Hill mining operations
and importantly supports both an
The refurbished processing facilities at KBL’s Mineral Hill project in New South Wales.
extension to the mine life and the ability to increase
gold production.”
The company was also expected to complete
its fourth shipment of copper concentrate
from Mineral Hill to Chinese company Yunnan
Copper by the end of December. The 1000
tonne shipments are packed in containers at
Dubbo and railed to Port Botany for dispatch.
The Mineral Hill mine is about 65km north of
the town of Condobolin in central western New
South Wales and has annual processing capacity
of 250,000 tonnes. It was mothballed in
2005 by Triako when copper and gold prices
plummeted. Substantial resources were left
undeveloped and the discovery of the nearby
high-grade gold-silver Pearse project has allowed
KBL to step in and cost-effectively refurbish
and upgrade the operation.
Additional production of gold and silver
dore, or unrefined bullion, from Pearse will
raise annual production to 5000 tonnes of
copper, 21,350 ounces of gold and 255,000
ounces of silver from mid-2012.
Commissioning of the processing plant was
completed in the fourth quarter of 2011 and
as the quality of development ore has improved,
so has plant performance. Copper
recoveries are now in the range of 85-90%
and concentrate grades between 22-24%
copper. The plant has also increased its daily
concentrate production to 50 tonnes.
Kimberley has started dewatering the decline
to access the SOZ drive. A new production
bore is being commissioned to increase
pumping rates by 150%, allowing the SOZ
and ESOZ deposits to be reached by late
2012. Mining operations are expected to
commence during early 2013 following rehabilitation
of the access.
Jim Wall says, “Achievement of milestone
shipments of concentrate marks the beginning
of steady-state production, at the
planned rate of 4500–5000 tonnes/annum of
copper concentrate.”
Study boosts estimated value of Hawsons
THE estimated net present value (NPV) of
Carpentaria Exploration’s Hawsons Iron Project
in the far west of New South Wales has
risen to Aus$3.2 billion after a recent mining
option study. Lower projected operating
costs based on modelling of in-pit crushing
and conveying compared to conventional
truck haulage prompted the 14% increase in
NPV from the pre-feasibility study (PFS).
The recent study has put mining cost estimates
at Aus$15.04 per tonne of concentrate,
a reduction of 23% over the PFS,
contributing to a 5% fall in operating costs to
Aus$33.97 per tonne of concentrate.
Carpentaria’s executive chairman Nick
Sheard says the study’s results are very pleasing
and boost the prospects of a new mine
being established at what’s regarded as eastern
Australia's biggest new magnetite discovery.
“This builds on an already robust financial
model and development concept and shows
the benefits of a very large and simple deposit.
In-pit crushing and conveying is an established
mining method and well suited to
the Hawsons deposit, importantly it has not
yet been optimized and further cost reductions
are possible,” he says.
Carpentaria is also working to make cost
savings on processing to maximize the benefits
of the very soft ore and excellent magnetite
liberation. The joint venture with Bonython
Metals Group is 60km southwest of Broken
Hill, near the border of South Australia, and includes
an inferred magnetite resource of 1.4
billion tonnes at a Davis Tube Recovery (DTR)
rate of 15.5% (12% cut off) and an exploration
target of 6-11 billion tonnes at 14-17% DTR.
This includes up to 1.9 billion tonnes of highgrade
magnetite concentrate.
The May 2011 PFS stated that Hawsons
could annually generate 20 million tonnes of
concentrate production after an initial annual
5 million tonne, 3-year start-up period. Carpentaria
says by using conservative engineering
and financial assumptions, the project
could be very profitable during a long mine
life of between 24 and 50 years.
The improvement in the financial modelling
as a result of lower operating costs can
mainly be attributed to the in-pit crushing and
conveying option which drastically reduces
road haulage and energy consumption.
Nick Sheard says, “These ongoing improved
project results show the potential of Hawsons
to become a company-making project for Carpentaria
and an ongoing source of wealth for
shareholders. Carpentaria will continue to work
to reduce costs and strive to produce magnetite
at a comparable cost to West Australian
hematite producers.”
26 | ASIA Miner | January/February 2012