The 2 per cent increase in underground ore reserves, following mining depletion, has extended Oz Minerals’ Prominent Hill mine life by one year, enabling the expected underground production rate of 3.5 – 4 Million tonnes (Mt) per annum.
The Adelaide-based miner has just released updated Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimates as at 30 June 2018 for Prominent Hill and an initial Inferred Resource for Fremantle Doctor as at 12 November 2018.
Underground Ore Reserve tonnes and contained metal at Prominent Hill remain in line with the previous year, with open pit and underground mining depletion partially offset by increases in underground Ore Reserves.
Proved Underground Ore Reserves also doubled, with the company stating a 50 per cent increase to 28 Million tonnes (Mt), which is the result of improved geological confidence from diamond drilling activity through the year.
Oz Minerals Managing Director and CEO, Andrew Cole, said the increase in underground Proved Reserves materially increased confidence in the Prominent Hill ore body and further de-risked Life of Mine planning.
“Prominent Hill has again demonstrated the ability to extend mine life through conversion of its extensive resource base, whilst reliably delivering production and costs to guidance,” he said.
“With an estimated 80Mt of underground mineral resource outside of the Ore Reserve, we will continue our drilling program to convert more material in Reserves with the aim of extending mine life year on year,” Mr Cole commented.
Prominent Hill came on stream in 2009 and now produces over 100,000 tonnes of copper every year. The open pit aspect of the operation concluded in the first Quarter of 2018.
The Fremantle Doctor prospect is also in South Australia, in line with Oz Minerals Carrapateena copper-gold project 160 kilometres north of Port Augusta.
An initial estimated Inferred Resource of 104 Mt at 0.7 per cent copper and 0.5 grams per tonne of gold has been released for Fremantle Doctor. The resource lies just over 2 kilometres from the Carrapateena ore body and will be considered in the broader Carrapateena life of province planning and expansion studies as an adjunct development to the Carrapateena project.
“This provides another valuable input into our life of province planning and will help inform our expansion studies that are currently in progress,” Mr Cole said.
“In addition to releasing an updated Carrapateena Mineral Resource estimate in Q1 2019, we are working on updated resource statements for West Musgrave, Antas, Pedra Branca and CentroGold, and an initial resource statement for Pantera.”
“These will be progressively released through 2019 and build on the consolidated OZ Minerals position,” he concluded.
More information on the Prominent Hill copper-gold mining operation and the Fremantle Doctor prospect in northern South Australia can be found here.
