Photo by: Bloomberg
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The board of ASX-listed Phoenix Gold has approved the development of an opencut mine at the Kintore West deposit, which forms part of the greater Castle Hill project, in Western Australia.
Mining at Kintore West was expected to start in the September quarter, Phoenix told shareholders on Wednesday.
“Development of Kintore West is a significant milestone for Phoenix and will be the first in a series of mines under the staged development plan. We received over 20 proposals for the mining contract and over ten for the haulage contract, demonstrating a very competitive tender process in what is an improving cost environment,” said Phoenix MD Jon Price.
Phoenix has awarded a number of key mining contracts for Kintore West and Price said that the company was now focused on transitioning the business from an explorer to producer.
Kintore West is the first mine in a series of smaller-scale mines, which would be developed under the staged development plan for Castle Hill.
Earlier this month, Phoenix signed a letter of agreement with fellow miner St Ives Gold Mining Company to acquire its 2.3-million-tonne-a-year heap leach processing plant for A$2-million to treat lower-grade stockpiled ore from the Castle Hill operation.