West Wits Mining Ltd has launched a comprehensive strategic review across the entirety of its Witwatersrand Basin Project (WBP) in South Africa in response to booming gold prices, which have recently topped US$3,000 per ounce.
At the same time, there are ongoing efforts to finalise funding for the company’s near-term production focus at the Qala Shallows gold project.
The company’s immediate priority is to drum up funding to initiate production at Qala Shallows, having arranged interim working capital of A$550,000 – it will mobilise as soon as it secures full project financing.
New viability unlocked
The review initiative will reassess the Qala Shallows Life-of-Mine (LOM) plan, last updated in July 2023 by Bara Consulting, as well as potential development opportunities across the WBP’s broader reef systems.
Central to the review is the need to evaluate lower cut-off grades and previously excluded mining zones, which may now be economically viable, potentially increasing the ore reserve and accelerating production.
Beyond Qala Shallows, the review will revisit development scenarios for the WBP’s Main Reef and Bird Reef systems.
The Main Reef project targets high-grade remnants accessible through existing infrastructure, while the Bird Reef Central contains both gold and uranium mineralisation.
Revised economic assessment
A revised economic assessment is planned to determine whether the Bird Reef Central can be developed as a combined gold and uranium operation.
Current estimates peg the gold resource at 1.38 million tonnes at 2.66 grams per tonne for 118,000 ounces, alongside a uranium exploration target of 12 to 16 million pounds of U₃O₈.
West Wits will also investigate the refurbishment of Shaft 6, a historically mined incline shaft, as part of a broader strategy to fast-track development and reduce risk.
The review also extends to Project 200, a conceptual expansion initiative targeting production of up to 200,000 ounces of gold annually.
The recent granting of Prospecting Right PR10730 has expanded the WBP’s Mineral Resource Estimate to 5.025 million ounces at 4.66 g/t gold, which underlines the long-term development potential.