WIN Metals Ltd. has secured a six-month option to acquire a modular gravity processing plant to anchor its proposed 120,000-tonne per annum (tpa) Radio Gold operation in Western Australia.
The deal was struck with Tungsten Mining NL and gives WIN the rights to purchase a near-new front-end gold recovery circuit.
Initially constructed in 2014 to process tantalite ore, the modular plant was decommissioned after only a month of operations and has sat idle ever since.
WIN has paid an initial upfront option fee of AU$50,000 to lock in the asset. If exercised within the six-month window, the company will finalise the transaction with a subsequent payment of AU$250,000 in cash and AU$250,000 worth of WIN shares.
The modular layout features a run-of-mine (ROM) bin, conveyors, a scrubber trommel, a 245-kilowatt ball mill, screens, a spiral, a jig, and lamella thickener modules.
The plant’s structural capacity of 15 tonnes per hour aligns perfectly with the target grind size and throughput needed to maximise metallurgy at Radio.
Previous testing on the high-grade orebody yielded exceptional gravity gold recoveries reaching up to 87 per cent.
WIN Metals Managing Director and CEO Steve Norregaard said: “Securing this option is another practical step towards bringing Radio into production.
“The plant is well matched to the scale of the project and provides a fit-for-purpose processing solution that can be integrated with the existing infrastructure already in place at site.
“The opportunity to acquire a near-new grinding and gravity circuit at a fraction of replacement cost aligns strongly with that objective and has the potential to materially reduce development capital requirements.”
The company decided to advance an standalone onsite strategy after internal financial reviews deemed conventional third-party ore tolling and purchasing agreements less attractive under current market conditions.
To expedite execution, WIN has engaged Mining Engineering Services Australia (MESA) to spearhead engineering designs and detailed capital cost estimates.
In parallel, regulatory permitting has officially commenced to recommission the historic site’s existing tailings storage facility and process plant footprint.
