Tanzania’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has granted partners
The two already have an approved environmental impact assessment in hand, and negotiations for the remaining project permits and agreements are well under way.
The East zone is home to an indicated resource of 1.7 million tonnes grading 14.19 grams gold per tonne. Mineralization is hosted by three gold-bearing quartz veins, which have a combined strike length of 1.3 km. At last report, the zone extended no deeper than 150 metres below surface.
A feasibility study of the East zone envisages a single, 50-hectare (0.5-sq.-km) open-pit mine capable of producing 21,000 tonnes per day, with the waste-ore ratio pegged at 18.3 to 1. The operation would run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Over a 4-year period and at a gold price of US$325 per oz., the contractor-operated open-pit operation is expected to produce 500,000 oz. gold by targeting 1.4 million tonnes of ore grading 11.54 grams gold per tonne. The final pit depth rests at 135 metres below surface.
Under a pit design by Montreal-based Met-Chem Canada, mining costs are pegged at US$1.50 per tonne, milling costs, at US$12 per tonne, and administration costs, at US30 per tonne. The estimates are based on a gold price of US$300 per oz., and a recovery rate of 90%.
The partners have retained Met-Chem to prepare a preliminary study considering the underground mining of the non open-pit resources. At an economic cutoff grade of 1.6 grams gold, Met-Chem estimates diluted resources in the East zone to be 2.64 million tonnes averaging 9.27 grams gold.
Tailings at Tulawaka will be contained in a free-standing storage facility north of the open pit, and will not obstruct local watercourses. An estimated 1,200 cubic metres of fresh water will be required for processing, dust control, domestic consumption, and gold room usage each day. Plans call for the water to be supplied from both underground and surface sources.
The proposed processing circuit includes run-of-mine stockpiling, primary crushing, single-stage semi-autogenous-grinding, and gravity recovery, followed by intensive leaching and carbon-in-leach (CIL) gold extraction. A cyanide detoxification process will reduce cyanide concentrations in the tailings slurry.
Barrick, the operator, holds a 70% interest in the property. Northern Mining holds the remainder.
News of the licence sent shares in MDN 11, or 14%, higher to 90 in Toronto on Nov. 13. For their part, Barrick’s shares slipped 32 to $27.38.
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