(Alliance News) - Australian gold miner Resolute Mining Ltd has completed the first part of the expansion of the Ravenswood mine, it said on Monday.
This follows five months of work to refurbish the third ball mill at the Nolans processing plant at the mine, located in Queensland. This will increase site processing capacity to five million tonnes a year, helping production rise to 80,000 ounces of gold a year.
Stage two of the expansion is set to begin in 2020, which will see Resolute target production of 200,000 ounces a year for 15 years from 2022.
"The strategic review of the Ravenswood expansion project continues to demonstrate we are creating value for Resolute. Increasing the plant capacity at Ravenswood to five million tonnes a year and using this capacity to beneficiate and process available low-grade stockpiles, delivers an immediately cashflow positive, profitable mining operation at Ravenswood," said Chief Executive & Managing Director John Welborn.
"More importantly, it is a step towards the much larger production base that we believe is possible at Ravenswood. During 2020, the strategic review will now evaluate the future capital demands of the full expansion project, contemplate the timing of an investment decision on stage two, and how best to maximise value for Resolute shareholders from this potential.
This comes after the firm on Friday last week announced the roaster at the Syama mine in Mali is now fully operational, after being shut due to a crack in October.
Shares in Resolute were 2.1% higher in London on Monday morning at 59.49 pence each.
By George Collard; georgecollard@alliancenews.com
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Resolute Mining (RSG)