Gold Road Resources Ltd (ASX:GOR) and Gruyere Mining Company Pty Ltd have completed 97% of commissioning and construction work at the Gruyere Gold Project and remain on track for first gold later this quarter.
The project, which is a 50:50 joint venture with Gold Road and Gruyere Mining, a member of the Gold Fields Limited group (NYSE:GFI), is about 200 kilometres east of Laverton in WA’s Goldfields.
Finishing works are in progress across the site and the partners are progressively handing over to the commissioning phase.
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The primary crushing system was ore commissioned in January with material being delivered to the coarse ore stockpile.
This system is being handed over to the operations team.
The Gruyere power station and high voltage sub-stations across the site are fully commissioned, enabling power supply for commissioning activities.
Water systems around the process plant are fully commissioned as is the Yeo Borefield in the southern section, which has delivered water to the main transfer station ahead of the plant.
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Dry commissioning activities are in progress including the coarse ore reclaim and mill feed circuits, the grinding areas SAG and Balls Mills, CIL, thickeners and reagents areas.
The company remains on target for the final forecast capital cost estimate of $621 million of which $284 million is attributable to Gold Road.
Mining activities scaled up to double shift operations in January with total mining movement tracking ahead of plan.
From the start of construction to the end of March 2019, Gruyere will have mined 4.9 million BCM of material from the open pit as budgeted in the feasibility study.
During the initial stages of plant commissioning and ramp-up, lower grade stockpiled ore will be processed to reduce gold losses associated with lower recoveries anticipated as the plant operations are stabilised.
The plant is anticipated to ramp-up to capacity over a period of six to seven months.