Coolgardie Minerals Limited (ASX:CM1) has begun stage two mining at its Geko Gold Project near Coolgardie, representing the higher-grade oxide component of the ore body.
Following the company’s three-stage mine plan for Geko, stage one was completed in December last year with ore above the grade of 22.75 g/t sold to gold major Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST) and the remainder stockpiled.
READ: Coolgardie Minerals signs ore sale agreement for Geko
The company entered into an ore sale agreement in September last year with Northern Star, who bought the first 100,000 tonnes of oxide ore at a fixed price of $1,650 per ounce.
Coolgardie managing director Brad Granville said the agreement was a significant milestone for the company.
He said: “This agreement is transitioning us from developer to producer and locking in consistent revenue through to quarter two, 2019.”
Grade above 2.75 g/t for sale under previous agreement
The oxide ore mined from stage two with a grade above 2.75 g/t gold will be offered to Northern Star for sale under the previously announced ore sale agreement.
Expected stage two mining results
- 260,000 tonnes of ore mined
- Average mined grade of 2.23 g/t
- 18,640 ounces of contained gold
Stage three will mine the remainder of the orebody subject to the successful completion of stage two and securing a toll milling agreement acceptable to the company.
- Jessica Cummins