GoldStone Resources jumps as it commences mining in Ghana
(GRL ) has informed investors that mining and ore stacking at the Homase Mine within its Akrokeri-Homase Gold Project ("AKHM") in Ghana has commenced with the first mined ore having been successfully stacked onto the heap leach pad.
The Group, which develops projects in Ghana ranging from grassroots exploration to development, is focused on developing Akrokeri-Homase in south-western Ghana, which hosts a JORC Code compliant 602,000 oz gold resource at an average grade of 1.77 g/t.
GoldStone said the first ore was stacked on leach pad last week and that the first two cells of the heap leach pad have now been commissioned, enabling stacking to commence at a rate of 100 tonnes per hour, which is currently ramping up to a target of 200 tonnes per hour.
To date, 80,000 tonnes of ore have been stockpiled, equating to around one month of mine production at full 3,000 tonne per day heap leach capacity, the company told investors.
According to figures derived by Goldstone, which believes the cash cost lies within the lower quartile of industry cost standards, the first eight months production of Homase is forecast to produce some 25,000 ounces of gold, at a total cash cost, pre-tax, of under $600per ounce.
The planned gold production for the first eight months from commencement of mining now exceeds the Company's original guidance of 14,400 ounces per annum, stated in the Definitive Economic Plan ("DEP") which was published by Goldstone back in June 2019.
Shares in GoldStone Resources have increased by over 50% in value since the beginning of 2021. The stock jumped 19.05% higher this morning to 13.75p following the announcement.
Goldstone said it expects to increase the planned production rate to around 50,000 ounces of gold per annum, an increase of more than 300% from the original production schedule.
The Company said it is now reviewing options to extract saleable gold from the loaded carbon it is producing. Meanwhile, it told investors that additional funding may be required in the coming months depending on the timing and cost associated with such arrangements.
Mining operations, which began in April 2021, following the pre-stripping and clearing of the Homase mine site, ‘continue to perform well’ with the daily mining rate and the growth in the primary and secondary run-of-mine stockpiles are performing at or above the targeted levels.
Following the increase in mineable resources and the optimization review, GoldStone said it is in the process of updating the DEP and added that it will update the market in Q3 2021.
“This is a pivotal step in the evolution of the Company as we start production of the Homase Mine. Commencement of operations will lead to an ongoing revenue stream and will also establish a base for unlocking value in our AKHM project,” said CEO, Emma Priestley.
She added, "A further benefit from the commencement of production at Homase is that exploration team will now be able to proceed with drilling the Homase Mineralised Trend that lies below and along strike of the current 602,000 ounce JORC resource, with a view to extending the mine's original 5 year life. The exploration team has previously limited its work on this initiative, as the production start-up at Homase has been the Company's priority".
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