Steppe Gold Ltd (TSX:STGO, OTCQX:STPGF) said it is focusing on finalizing engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) arrangements and initiating the deployment of capital after having secured $150 million in financing to fully fund the Phase 2 expansion at its ATO Gold Mine in Mongolia.
In a second-quarter corporate update, the company said EPC arrangements were in the final stages with a leading EPC group with extensive construction and engineering experience in Mongolia.
An announcement of signed definitive agreements for the EPC arrangements is expected by the end of July.
Additionally, with the crusher installation near complete at the mine site, Steppe Gold said it is looking to complete power supply plans and commission the unit later this year, with camp design and expansion already underway.
"With our landmark financing package secured, we are excited to accelerate the ongoing work on the Phase 2 expansion,” Steppe Gold CEO Bataa Tumur-Ochir said.
“The ATO Gold Mine, with its Phase 1 in production and Phase 2 flotation plant under construction, with ready infrastructure, serves as a model for responsible mine development in the region.”
Production from its Phase 1 heap leach operations continues, with 2Q production at 6,663 ounces of gold and 14,239 ounces of silver, the company reported. It said it is on track to produce and sell about 25,000 to 30,000 ounces of gold in 2023.
Further, it said it was advancing plans for additional license acquisitions in Mongolia.
“We are also actively assessing new projects in Mongolia to expand our footprint and move from single to multi-asset producer in a short period of time,” Tumur-Ochir commented in a statement.
On its recent acquisition of the Tres Cruces gold project in Peru, the company said it has commenced an update of the March 2022 technical report and is conducting a review of source geological data as it looks to develop a plan for advancing the project.
Steppe Gold is a precious metals company focused on the ATO Gold Mine in Mongolia.
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