PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Gold miner Resolute Mining has reported a 1.7-million-ounce increase in the mineral resource inventory, which now stood at 11.2-million ounces of gold, net of depletion.
Ore reserves have increased by 0.6-million ounces to 4.6-million ounces of gold, net of depletion.
Resolute told shareholders on Wednesday that the exploration success at the company’s Sayama North project, in Mali, had added two-million ounces of gold to the company’s mineral resource base this year, adding 850 000 oz to the ore reserve.
“The continued success of the drilling program at Syama North over the second half of 2022 exceeded our expectations. The drill rigs are still turning on this contiguous strike discovery of over 6 km which remains open at depth. At this stage the 850 000 oz of Syama North ore reserves focus only on the widest sections of the A21 pit, thus we expect further updates later this year as in-fill drilling continues delineating additional economic mineralisation,” said Resolute CEO Terry Holohan.
“It is also worth noting that the 10% oxides delineated at Syama North now represent some of the highest grades of oxides at Syama such that they will get processing preference once mining starts in earnest.
“Also due to recent sustainable efficiency improvements at the Syama underground operation over 2022, the company was able to convert a further 126 000 oz of the existing mineral resource estimate to ore reserves.”
Holohan said that focus would now turn to the prefeasibility study at Syama North, which is intended to be the first step in exploiting the sulphide reserve. The study is due for publication in mid-2023.