Photo by: © Creamer Media
Name of the Project
Nyanzaga gold project.
Location
Lake Victoria Goldfields region, north-west Tanzania.
Project Owner/s
OreCorp holds an 84% interest in the Nyanzaga gold project, in partnership with the government of Tanzania.
Project Description
The project has a combined openpit and underground production target of 42.51-million tonnes grading 2.07 g/t gold for 2.83-million ounces of contained gold.
Peak gold production is estimated at 295 000 oz/y, averaging 250 000 oz/y for the first eight years and 242 000 oz/y for the first ten years.
Life-of-mine average gold production is estimated at 234 000 oz/y over 10.7 years.
Openpits are scheduled to deliver 1.2-million ounces at 1.32 g/t gold and a low 3.7:1 (waste:ore) strip ratio using an average weighted lower cutoff grade of 0.48 g/t gold.
Underground mining is scheduled to deliver 1.64-million ounces at 3.55 g/t gold using an average weighted lower cutoff grade of 2.0 g/t gold.
Processing of Nyanzaga ore will be by a conventional four-million-tonne-a-year semiautogenous-ball mill and crusher, with a carbon-in-leach treatment route. The material will be ground to 80% passing 75 μm. The average life-of-mine gold recovery is 88%.
Potential Job Creation
Not stated.
Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of $926-million and an internal rate of return of 31%, with a payback of 3.7 years.
Capital Expenditure
$474-million.
Planned Start/End Date
Project construction is targeted to start in the third quarter of 2023, with first production due in the first quarter of 2025.
Latest Developments
Silvercorp has indicated that the development timeline for the project aligns closely with those of takeover target OreCorp.
OreCorp CEO and MD Henk Diederichs told delegates at Paydirt’s Africa Downunder conference on September 7 that the A$28-million in funding received from Silvercorp to advance the resettlement activities for the project is a clear statement that Silvercorp is proposing to progress the development of Nyanzaga "along a similar timeline" as what OreCorp had planned.
“The Silvercorp development plan . . . is not dissimilar to what OreCorp had contemplated. OreCorp contemplates a slightly deeper and, therefore, larger openpit and then a phased approach, with the openpit starting first, followed by the development of the underground a couple of years thereafter,” said Diederichs.
Under a binding implementation deed signed earlier this year, Silvercorp will acquire all the shares in OreCorp not already held for 15c in cash, and 0.0967 of a Silvercorp share for every OreCorp share held, representing an implied value of 60c for each OreCorp share.
The offer presents a 41.7% premium to OreCorp’s 20-day volume weighted average share price, and a 31.5% premium to the company’s last share trade on August 4.
The two companies are hoping to complete the transaction before the end of the year.
Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.
Contact Details for Project Information
OreCorp +61 8 9381 9997.