PERTH (miningweekly.com) – A prefeasibility study (PFS) into the 15 Mile gold project, in Nova Scotia, has estimated a capital cost of A$207-million, or C$182-million, to bring the project into production.
ASX-listed St Barbara on Tuesday said that the project was expected to have an all-in sustaining cost of $992/oz, or A$1 445/oz, and could produce between 55 000 oz/y and 60 000 oz/y over an 11-year mine life.
The PFS estimated a post-tax net present value of C$174-million, or A$198-million, and a post-tax internal rate of return of 20.3%, using a long-term gold price of $1 700/oz, and an exchange rate of C$1: $0.78, and C$1: A$1.14.
The PFS was based on an ore reserve of 618 000 oz of contained gold and a mineral resource of 836 000 oz of contained gold.
“With this strong PFS result, St Barbara will now focus on preparation of an updated environmental and social impact assessment for this new standalone design of the 15 Mile project,” said MD and CEO Andrew Strelein.
“St Barbara is looking forward to working with Nova Scotia to create hundreds of well-paid rural jobs and to remediating the historical tailings at the site. The feasibility study engineering is intended to be ramped up as we see progress towards environmental approval with commencement of development entirely achievable in mid-calendar 2026.