PERTH (miningweekly.com) – A 2016 drilling programme at the Carrapateena copper/gold project, in South Australia, has increased Oz Minerals’ confidence in the project.
The drilling programme resulted in an updated mineral resource estimate of 134-million tonnes, grading 1.5% copper, 0.6 g/t gold and 6.5 g/t silver, with 46% of the resource falling within the measured classification.
“These results further increase our confidence in the Carrapateena resource and underline our strategy to develop the first stage of this project in a world-class mineral district,” said Oz Minerals COO Bob Fulker.
“In line with our commitment to create value, we commenced construction of the Tjai decline in September 2016, to enable first operating cash flow from Carrapateena in 2019, construction is progressing well and remains on schedule.”
Fulker said that given the confidence Oz Minerals now had in the mineral resource estimate at Carrapateena, no further resource drilling would be completed from surface.
The next round of drilling would be conducted from underground in late 2017, as the decline progresses, meaning drilling costs would also reduce.
A November prefeasibility study estimated that the Carrapateena project could support a production rate of 61 000 t/y of copper and 63 000 oz/y of gold, over an estimated 20-year mine life. Project costs have been estimated at A$770-million.