PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Dewatering of the Koolan Island project’s main pit has started, ASX-listed Mount Gibson said on Thursday.
The start of high volume dewatering in the main pit followed the successful completion of the concrete seepage barrier at the seawall, in mid-July, and following a necessary waiting period for curing of the seepage barrier panels.
“Having successfully completed the critical seepage barrier construction stage of the project last month, it is extremely satisfying to have commenced the final key phase in our programme to bring the high-grade Koolan Island mine back into production,” said Mount Gibson CEO Jim Beyer.
“We are now dewatering at a rate equivalent to emptying an Olympic-sized swimming pool every half an hour, keeping us on track to complete dewatering by the end of this year, in line with our plan to commence sales in the March quarter.”
Beyer said that given the structural change in pricing favouring high-grade ores, the Koolan Island restart project represented an outstanding investment that positioned Mount Gibson to generate strong cash flow well into the next decade.
Mount Gibson in April this year reported more than a 50% increase in the ore reserves at Koolan Island, to 21-million tonnes, grading 65.5% iron, extending the mine life to over five years, up from its previous three-and-a-half years.