Open Pit Mining Red Setter etc (AI)27 Mar 2026 13:12
From AI (so with a pinch of salt ..)
«Comparison to Commercial Benchmarks (March 2026)
Grade Viability:
The 1.09 g/t gold found at Red Setter is roughly double the average head grade of the nearby West Dome Open Pit at Telfer, which operates at approximately 0.55 g/t gold.
Typical Australian open-pit operations in early 2026 report average mill feed grades of around 1.02 g/t gold.
This suggests that 1.09 g/t is well within the "commercial" range for a shallow open-pit operation in this region.
Depth and "Starter" Potential:
The 8.36m intercept was found at a depth of 304.80m.
While this is deeper than some "ultra-shallow" starter pits (which can be as shallow as 15m–80m), it remains within the standard 300m–500m depth for large-scale open-pit mining.
Wishbone has identified other high-priority targets even shallower, between 50m and 117m. If 2026 drilling confirms ~1.0 g/t grades at these shallower depths, it would significantly strengthen the case for a low-cost starter pit.
Economic "Sweeteners":
Copper Credits: The 1.09 g/t gold was accompanied by copper mineralization. In a commercial scenario, this copper is sold as a by-product, effectively lowering the "break-even" gold grade needed for the pit to be profitable.
High Gold Prices: With gold prices in early 2026 forecast to remain strong (ranging from US$4,000 to over US$5,000 per ounce), even lower-grade "bulk tonnage" (e.g., 0.4g/t to 0.6g/t) is becoming increasingly profitable for WA»