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Ghana gold mining contract awarded

22nd May 2015

  

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Australian diversified mining services company Ausdrill’s wholly-owned subsidiary African Mining Services (AMS) has been awarded a contract to provide openpit mining services to gold explorer Perseus Mining’s Edikan gold mine’s (EGM’s) Eastern Pits operation, in Ghana, Ausdrill announced late last month.

The mining contract is valid for an initial period of three years after which it can be extended for another two years.

Mining is scheduled to start in the second quarter of this year, and the contract is expected to generate $223-million in revenue over the five-year period.

AMS has been providing mining services to Perseus since 2011.

“We are delighted to extend the relationship we have developed with Perseus in Africa. The award of this contract clearly demonstrates the capability of AMS to deliver quality service on schedule,” says Ausdrill MD Ron Sayers.

Edikan mine
According to the project’s recently updated life-of-mine plan (LOMP) independently estimated proved and probable ore reserves for the EGM total 61.6-million tons of ore grading 1.2 g/t of gold.

The mining and processing of ore will take place from seven optimised openpits designed using $1 200/oz pit shells, with the input costs based on actual operating experience and contracted supply agreements.

"The LOMP clearly demonstrates that Edikan is an economically robust operation that has successfully come through an extended ramp-up phase. The future prospects of Edikan and, therefore Perseus, are  positive.

“Over the past twelve months we have demonstrated that by focusing on achieving incremental improvements to both the technical and commercial aspects of our operation, we can consistently deliver credible results,” says Perseus MD Jeff Quartermaine.

He adds that while the external environment in which Perseus operates can be unpredictable and challenging at times, based on recent performance, the company is confident that it has a professional site team that is adaptable and capable of rising to any challenges that come from the project.

“We are very much looking forward to consistently delivering to the updated LOMP and in the process creating material value for our shareholders," says Quartermaine.

The value of future cash flows from the Edikan mine is expected to contribute materially to the underlying value of Perseus.

Mine Planning
The company examined a range of mine development scenarios with the objective of maximising the net present value of forecast cash flows from EGM.

This task involved varying key parameters such as the pit development sequence, applying technical assumptions that reflected actual operating parameters, and working within known constraints such as the expected timing of access to new mining areas.

The chosen method of mining is conventional openpit mining using hydraulic excavators and trucks and mining bench heights of 5 m with 2.5 m flitches to minimise ore loss and waste rock dilution.

The mine’s economic pit shell was defined using Whittle 4X pit optimisation software with inputs such as geotechnical parameters, ore loss and dilution, metallurgical recovery and mining costs.

The pit optimisation was run with revenue generated only by measured and indicated mineral resources and no value was allocated to inferred mineral resources.

The pit slope design assumptions are based on a geotechnical study, and overall pit slopes are 30° to 50° inclusive of berms spaced at between 5 m and 20 m vertically and berm widths of 5 m to 12 m.

Mining modifying factors such as ore loss, dilution and design parameters were used to convert the mineral resource to an ore reserve, and a minimum mining width of 40 m was generally applied to the pit designs.

Edited by Leandi Kolver
Creamer Media Deputy Editor

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