Name of the Project
Bardoc gold project.

Location
North of Kalgoorlie, in Western Australia.

Project Owner/s
Exploration and development company Bardoc Gold.

Project Description
A definitive feasibility study (DFS) has confirmed the potential of the project to support a significant near-term, high-margin gold development project with a robust production profile, competitive operating costs and attractive financial returns.

Bardoc comprises the Excelsior, Zoroastrian, Aphrodite, Bulletin South and Mayday openpits, which will be mined using conventional openpit mining methods.

The DFS is based on the development of a standalone mining and processing operation, with a 2.1-million-tonne-a-year carbon-in-leach (CIL) plant and flotation circuit to be built on site.

The processing plant will be built in two stages. Stage 1 will comprise CIL processing, while Stage 2 is an upgrade to include the flotation and dewatering circuits to treat the Aphrodite refractory material to be mined in Year 2.

The life-of-mine (LoM) plan will initially comprise a ten-year mining operation, delivering LoM production of 1.1-million ounces of contained gold, with peak gold production of 140 000 oz/y over six years.

Potential Job Creation
None stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at a 6% discount rate, of A$479-million and an internal rate of return of 41%, with a payback of 32 months from the start of production.

Capital Expenditure
A recently completed cash flow optimisation study has indicated a 31% increase, or about A$55-million, in the preproduction capital cost estimate for the project. In March 2021, the DFS indicated a capital cost estimate of A$177-million; this is now estimated to be A$232-million.

Planned Start/End Date
The project is targeted to start production in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Latest Developments
Bardoc has deferred the final investment decision for the project to complete a strategic review of the development strategy for project.

The strategic review has been prompted by a rapidly escalating cost environment in the Western Australia resources sector, a tightening labour market and other Covid-19-related challenges facing resource projects.

The company has stated that key suppliers have indicated that cost pressures for new resources projects will continue to worsen over the next 12 to 18 months, citing rising steel prices, materials and input costs.

Bardoc chairperson Tony Leibowitz has said that the board is not prepared to expose its shareholders to the risk associated with mine development at a “very challenging time in the resources cycle”.

The strategic review will include consideration of strategic merger and acquisition, and consolidation opportunities, as well as other pathways to monetise the deposit in the near term.

While the review is under way, all expenditure pertaining to predevelopment and project financing activities have been terminated and corporate overheads and costs will be reviewed.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Bardoc (study manager, mineral resource esti­mate, processing and environmental and stake­holder management); SMJ Engineering and Galt Mining Services (openpit mine design and scheduling); WestAuz and Bardoc (underground mine design and scheduling); Strategic Metallurgy (metallurgical testwork); Como Engineering (process plant design); WML Consultants & Longrun Infrastructure (road and rail realignment); ATC Williams (tailings dam design); Peter O’Bryan and Associates (geotechnical studies); REC Engineering (Excelsior tailings assessment); Orica Limited (blast-impact assessment); Cube Consulting (geology); IME Consultants, Como Engineering and Bardoc (infrastructure); AQ2 (hydrogeology); Landloch (waste classification); Talis Consulting (environmental studies); and Bardoc BurnVoir Corporate Finance (financial modelling).

Contact Details for Project Information
Bardoc Gold investor relations, tel +61 8 6215 0090 or email admin@bardocgold.com.au.
Read Corporate, on behalf of Bardoc, email info@readcorporate.com.au.