Name of the Project
Matilda/Wiluna expansion project.

Location
The Matilda/Wiluna operation is located in Australia’s largest goldbelt, which stretches from Norseman to Wiluna and passes through Kalgoorlie and Leinster.

Client
Blackham Resources.

Project Description
The Matilda/Wiluna operation has a Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant mineral resource of 63-million tonnes grading 3.2 g/t for 6.4-million ounces, all within a 20 km radius of the Wiluna gold plant, of which 31-million tonnes are in the measured and indicated resource category.

A preliminary expansion study on the operation released in May has proved positive. It focused on the Wiluna sulphides and their integration with the current free milling ores at Matilda and Wiluna.

It has been assumed that the expanded operation will be developed in two stages.
Stage 2A will involve the refurbishment of the current sulphide treatment plant and the construction of new float and carbon-in-leach (CIL) circuits.

Stage 2B will entail construction of a new crushing and grinding circuit to increase throughput by about 1.5-million tonnes a year. On completion of the stage, it is envisaged the treatment of free milling ore will restart, allowing for the two processing facilities to run in parallel with a total capacity of 3.2-million tonnes a year.

The expanded operation is targeting gold production of 17.8-million tonnes grading 2.7 g/t gold for 1.31-million ounces of gold over nine years.

Mining is envisaged to be undertaken by mining contractors, with management and technical services undertaken by Blackham’s operations team.

The Wiluna openpit will use a standard truck-and-excavator mining technique involving conventional drill, blast, load and haul. Ore will be hauled directly to the Wiluna gold plant on existing haul roads.

In addition to the mining fleet, an ancillary plant consisting of tracked bulldozers, wheel loaders, graders and water carts will be required. The ancillary fleet will prepare drill-and-blast areas and maintain active digging areas, mine roads and waste dumps. Ore will be delivered to the run-of-mine (RoM) pad at the plant site and then fed to the treatment plant using an RoM loader.

The underground operations at Wiluna have been divided into the Bulletin underground operations, which will initially be accessed from the existing Bulletin portal and the East West underground section, which will be accessed from existing underground infrastructure and portal access from the East pit.

Ore from the underground mines will be predominately extracted using top-down mechanised longhole openstoping and to a lesser degree a bottom-up modified Avoca method using unconsolidated backfill. Suitable pillars are left behind to ensure ground stability during the mining.

Ore is trucked to the surface and then hauled to the treatment plant.

Jobs to Be Created
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Value
Stage 2A capital has been estimated at A$24.9-million. The second stage expansion will cost about A$79-million.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Blackham Resources has several options and flexibility in terms of expanding the Matilda/Wiluna gold operation to more than 200 000 oz/y, which will be further examined during the feasibility study. These include, but are not limited to, the timing of execution, the option of producing a flotation concentrate for sale and examining underground bulk mining opportunities, particularly around the East West underground.

The feasibility study is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of this year.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Blackham Resources, tel +61 8 9322 6418, fax +61 8 9322 6398 or email info@blackhamresources.com.au.