Archipelago reports increase in Toka Tindung?s reserve
Tuesday, January 31 2012 - 06:07 AM WIB
London-listed miner Archipelago Resources Plc reported an increase in mineral resources and ore reserve estimates at its Toka Tindung gold mine in North Sulawesi.
Excluding silver as gold equivalent ounces, contained gold resources in the project have increased by 52% with ore reserves increasing by 60%, it said in a media statement.
In details, the resource has increased to 52.6Mt @ 1.53 g/t Au for 2.58M contained oz Au from 15Mt @ 3.4g/t Au for 1.7M contained oz Au, while proven and probable ore reserve has increased to 27.6Mt @ 1.7g/t Au for 1.47M contained oz Au from 7.62Mt @ 3.7g/t Au for 920k contained oz Au.
The increase in ore reserves supports extending the mine life from six to nine years. Life of mine planning indicates average production of circa 160,000 Au Eq oz for the next six years at a head grade of no less than 2.89 g/t Au.
The statement added that for the 2011 calendar year, the Toka Tindung mine produced 61,191 contained Au Eq oz (excluding Ag as Au Eq oz) at a cost of US$579 per ounce. For the 2012 year, it expects to produce between 135,000 and 145,000 Au Eq oz, at a cash cost of between US$540 and US$590 per oz.
Editing by Dadan Wijaksana