https://www.miningweekly.com

Pan African moving to acquire Blyvoor Gold surface resources for R110m

15th December 2021

By: Martin Creamer

Creamer Media Editor

     

Font size: - +

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Gold mining company Pan African on Wednesday announced that it had entered into a conditional agreement to acquire Blyvoor Gold Operations for R110-million from Peter Skeat's Blyvoor Gold.

The transaction takes in six tailings dumps containing more than 1.4-million ounces of gold, the company stated in a media release to Mining Weekly.

A technical study to prefeasibility level indicates potential to produce 25 000 oz to 30 000 oz of gold by processing six-million tonnes of tailings a year over a mine life of 15 years.

This will be extendable to 25 years with inclusion of inferred mineral resources.

The London- and Johannesburg-listed Pan African already an accomplished tailings processor at its Barberton Tailings Retreatment Plant, Evander Tailings Retreatment Plant and Elikhulu operations.

The hydro-mining method Pan African uses at these operations is also proposed for the Blyvoor Gold Operations.

Pan African currently retreats 1.3-million tonnes of tailings a month through its technologically advanced metallurgical plants to recover gold from surface material in Barberton and Evander.

Modern tailings retreatment operations are highly automated and Pan African, headed by CEO Cobus Loots, produces a 70 000 oz/y of recovered gold from the Elikhulu and the Barberton operations at an all-in sustaining cost of less than $900/oz.

Contemplated with Blyvoor Gold is a staged acquisition process involving a three-month initial fatal-flaw due diligence period, following which Pan African can elect to proceed with a definitive feasibility study over the following nine months to December 2022.

Thereafter, Pan African may elect to acquire Blyvoor Operations for R110-million cash. Pan African will fund this from internal cash resources.

Last year’s technical study by independent consultant Minxcon calculated the 142.9-million tonne mineral resources to have an in-situ gold grade of 0.31 g/t.

MINTAILS OPTIMISM REMAINS

Pan African remains optimistic on the Mintails transaction’s potential against the background of Mintails remaining in provisional liquidation and Pan African engaging with the provisional liquidator on progressing the transaction, as well as continuing with the finalisation of its definitive feasibility study at Mintails.

Pan African announced its conditional acquisition of Mintails SA Mogale Gold and Soweto Cluster tailings facilities just over a year ago.

Although a prefeasibility study was completed on Mogale Gold’s tailings resources during July, MSC was excluded from the study’s scope as its mineral resources require additional technical and due diligence analysis.

Average production of between 40 000 oz to 50 000 oz a year over an 11-year life of mine was foreseen.

Pan African is currently finalising a DRA-led definitive feasibility study which is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of next year. A concept study on the Soweto Cluster is also progressing under DRA.

Pan African expects to produce 105 000 oz of gold during the first six months of its 2022 financial year, to the end of December.

This represents a 6.7% production increase relative to the corresponding period of its previous financial year.

Its Barberton Mines are expected to produce 50 000 oz, Elikhulu 27 000 oz, and Evander Mines’ 8 Shaft pillar operation and Evander’s surface sources 28 000 oz.

The company describes itself as being well-positioned to exceed its full year production guidance of more than 195 000 oz.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

Comments

The content you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.

If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.

If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.

For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION