The Norseman Gold (LON:NGL, ASX:NGX) turnaround continued today with the appointment of a new chief operating officer.
He is Andrew Matheson, whose previous employment included stints with BHP (LON:BLT), Aquila Resources and GHD.
He will report to the company’s new chairman and major investor Kevin Maloney and his key priorities will include long-term planning and resource allocation as well as the day-to-day optimisation of the Norseman operations in Western Australia.
Maloney said: "Mr Matheson is a valuable addition to the Norseman team and his vast experience in the mining sector at a senior management level will help ensure that the Norseman operation maximises the significant opportunities that exist."
Last month Norseman raised A$25 million in a cash call fully underwritten by Tulla Group, the firm’s largest shareholder and the investment vehicle of Australian entrepreneur Maloney.
In a recent interview, Maloney said the company had a “great future” and he said he is focused on getting production up to 100-120,000 ounces a year and costs below the magic $1,000 an ounce.
Passing these two milestones creates a hugely cash generative operation.
After that Maloney intends to exploit the huge potential of the area.
The project, which covers 2,360 square kilometres of Western Australia’s Norseman-Wiluna greenstone belt, ultimately has the potential to be a 3-400,000 ounce a year gold producer, he reckons.
The current resource of 3.4 million ounces hints at the huge potential of the Norseman ground.
Around 80 years-worth of data has been digitised and requires sifting to unearth multiple potential targets.
The plan after doing this is to find an initial two new potential open pits that would run alongside an underground mine, giving the balanced mix of production.