Shanta Gold Limited (AIM:SHG, OTC:SAAGF) is close to completing construction at the Singida mine in central Tanzania.
"We are delighted with the great progress being made at Singida, with construction on schedule for first production next month,” said Shanta chief executive Eric Zurrin.
“The completion of this mine will transform Shanta Gold into a 100,000 ounce per year producer with a diversified resource base, de-risking the balance sheet and providing the business with further financial flexibility."
Overall construction activity at the project is 93% complete and all essential equipment for operation of the gold mine has now been delivered to site.
The stockpile of crushed ore has now reached 32,300 tonnes equal to over one month of supply, significantly de-risking the ramp-up period of operations.
What’s more, the run of mine, or ore, stockpile at the Singida process plant is currently 127,000 tonnes at an average grade of 3.34 grams per tonne, containing 13,581 ounces of gold, which is equal to approximately four months of processing.
The installation of the tailings storage facility HDPE liner for partial deposition is on track for completion in March 2023, commissioning of the milling circuit is about to begin, and commissioning of the engineering elution and electrowinning circuit is already underway.
Accordingly, commissioning of the full process plant is planned for March 2023.
The company has also appointed George Kondela, an experienced Tanzanian miner, as general manager of Singida.