JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Reno, Nevada-based Pershing Resources had started testing its pilot mill at a facility near Kingman, Arizona, in the US, marking the achievement of a major goal for the company and shareholders, Pershing Resources CEO Steve Plumb said on Tuesday.

"We have developed the beginnings of a production capability and expect to be able to report a modest cash flow from operations in the near term.”

Pershing Resources explained that it had largely completed assembly of a pilot mill after taking delivery of a sonification unit, crushing circuit and other equipment in early May.

Testing would take 60 to 90 days and would involve processing runs of 25 lb to 100 lb at a time. Once testing and adjustments were complete the pilot mill's capacity could be scaled up to 1 t/d, eventually increasing to 5 t/d.

Recently appointed Pershing Resources director of projects and mill operations William Earnshaw said: "The assay and recovery of precious metals is an art and, technological advances are changing how mining and particularly refining is being done. The lack of free milling ores is pushing larger mining concerns toward ever more efficient methods of recovery, which, in the past were not cost effective.

“We are working with several advanced technologies applied in recovery methods to increase our projected yields and cut our milling costs and time needed to process complex ores.”

He stated that Pershing Resources' Marco project was a good example of such ore types. In lab testing, ore that initially yielded 1 g/t of precious metals, moved to as high as 30 g/t when a method such as sonification was applied. “Technology is a disrupter and cost cutter in many industries and mining is no different," Earnshaw added.

Earnshaw, who had more than 30 years’ experience, had knowledge in exploration and project management in both North and South America as well as particular expertise in refining.

Before joining Pershing Resources he was president of Simple Recovery, which was acquired by the company earlier this year.

“Having Bill come on board along with the two additional properties has been a game changer for us and demonstrates how the acquisition of Simple Recovery has been immediately accretive for the company,” said Plumb.

Pershing Resources was a development-stage exploration and mining company focused on precious metal ores and mining projects in Nevada and Arizona.