Altyngold Regulatory News (ALTN)

24 Jan 2008 07:00

Hambledon Mining PLC24 January 2008 PRESS INFORMATION 24 January 2008 HAMBLEDON MINING PLC (AIM: HMB) Report on start-up and Board changes Hambledon Mining plc ("Hambledon" or the "Group" or the "Company"), theAIM-listed gold mining and processing company operating in Kazakhstan, announcesan update on operations at the Sekisovskoye gold mine and Ognevka processingplant. Both operations have had minor problems since the commencement of processing butthese have now been resolved and production is on track to meet the expectedlevels. Since the start of processing at the deposit, gold production was affected byseveral minor start-up problems. Shortly after the start, the two mainball-mills had to be shut down as a result of overheating of the discharge endbearings. This was caused by misalignment and inaccurate machining duringmanufacture. Some problems have also been experienced with the jaw crusher.However, these and several other minor issues have all been resolved and thecrushing and milling sections are now operating satisfactorily. The two final leach tanks, out of a total of six, have now been brought onlineand it is expected that through-put will reach the design level of 850,00 tonnesper year by the end of the month At Ognevka, where operations started on 29th November 2007, concentrateproduction has been hampered by poor flotation recoveries. The problem has beentraced to the effect of residual magnetism of fine particles after magneticseparation. The plant was shut down over the prolonged Christmas and New Yearholidays for modifications but has now re-started and is operating normally at20 tonnes per hour. Output will be raised to 30 tonnes per hour from February. The Company also announces the appointment of Neil Robert Stevenson, aged 45, asan executive director. Neil joined the Company as Operations Manager in August2005. He is a mining engineer with a post graduate degree in BusinessAdministration and has over 20 years experience in the management of open pitand underground mining operations. Under Schedule 2, paragraph (g) of AIM Rules for Companies, there is nothingfurther to disclose. In addition, Randall Pyper has resigned his position as Technical Director.Randall has been associated with the Company since February 2003, initially as aconsultant and then as a director since the Company's flotation on AIM in June2004. He has overseen technical development from the inception of theSekisovskoye project through to the start of production. He will continue to bea consultant to the Company both in the further development of our existingoperations and in reviewing future opportunities. Nick Bridgen. Chief Executive, commented: "It is sad to say goodbye to Randall, who has been with us from the verybeginning but he has a growing family and now needs to spend more time at home.We wish him well in his return to consulting life as head of Kappes Cassiday &Associates Australia in Perth. "The start up has had a few teething problems, as expected, but nothing majorhas emerged and we look forward to steady production figures going forward." Photographs of the gold pour at Sekisovskoye will shortly be available to viewon the Company's website: www.hambledon-mining.com Enquiries Hambledon Mining plcNicholas Bridgen, Chief Executive Telephone: +44 7791 327180 +7 701 733 8915 Bankside ConsultantsMichael Spriggs / Michael Padley Telephone: +4420 7367 8888 Seymour PierceNicola Marrin Telephone: +4420 7107 8018 Note to editors Hambledon Mining plc is an AIM-listed gold mining and exploration company, whichis operating the Sekisovskoye gold mine and the Ognevka processing plant, bothof which are close to Ust Kamenogorsk in East Kazakhstan. At Sekisovskoye, the Company is mining from an open pit and has constructed an850,000 tonnes per year treatment plant. Production from the open pit willaverage over 40,000 ounces per annum. After the start of open pit processing,the Company plans to develop the much larger underground resource that isexpected to lead to a combined production rate of around 100,000 ounces peryear. The Ognevka processing plant is producing concentrates containing gold, silver,copper, iron and coke from the re-treatment of zinc smelter residues. ENDS This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange