The Twin Hills gold project, in Namibia’s prospective Damara mineral belt, has been validated as a “very robust, cash generative project that will deliver outstanding returns”, Osino Resources cofounder and CEO Heye Daun has said.
The Vancouver-based company this week announced the results of its definitive feasibility study (DFS) for Twin Hills, which confirmed plans for a 13-year mining operation, producing an average of 162 000 oz/y at an all-in sustaining cost of $1 011/oz.
“The DFS confirms Twin Hills as a technically simple, long-life and low-cost gold project with very strong economics and plenty of upside,” said Daun.
The company is aiming to reach a fully financed construction decision for the $365-million project by the end of 2023, with gold production pencilled in for the end of 2025 or early 2026.
The DFS calculated a pretax net present value (NPV) of $742-million and an internal rate of return (IRR) of 34%, using a discount of 5% and a $1 750/oz gold price.
At spot gold prices of $1 950/oz, the project generates just under $1.5-billion of net pretax cashflows, demonstrating the strong margins, cash generation potential and economics of the project.
Twin Hills lies in proximity to and along strike of the producing openpit Navachab and Otjikoto gold mines.
The project has a pretax NPV, at a 5% discount rate, of $783-million and an IRR of 33% at a gold price of $1 700/oz, with a payback of 2.3 years.
The initial capital cost of the project is estimated at $375-million.