Sihayo cuts capital for stage 1 development plan
Wednesday, May 1 2013 - 01:59 AM WIB
ASX-listed Sihayo Gold Limited reported on Tuesday that its Stage 1 development plan, over an initial 4 year period to construct 1 mtpa standard Carbon-in-Leach processing plant and related infrastructure at its trademark Sihayo tenement, will reach a total of US$72 million or 45 percent less than the initial estimate of US$131.5 million. The total cost is then jotted down to US$60 million for process plant and infrastructure, US$5 million for owners cost and US$7 million for EPCM.
The company, in a quarterly report made available at the exchange, said that definitive feasibility study related works, focused on implementation planning for the proposed Staged Development approach, the project permitting activity, metallurgy studies and QA/QC review of the JORC Resource, was being done, with the results remain on schedule for the revised June 2013 completion.
On the account of Stage 1 development plan, which was to be followed by Stage 2 over a further 7 years with an expanded 1.3mtpa capacity CIL plant, is expoected to achieve operating estimates of l Mtpa mill throughput with an upside case at throughput rates approximately 10-15% higher, average annual production of 60,000oz pa of gold, 85% average process recoveries and cash site operating costs of between US$615/oz and US$645/oz.
"Stage 1 mining will preferentially mine 4Mt of +1 g/t Au cut-off grade material and allow for an additional 0.8Mt of lower grade (0.9 g/t Au) material to be stockpiled and processed later as plant capacity dictates," the company said, adding that Stage 1 indicative ore feed consists of approximately 3Mt at 2 g/t Au from the Sihayo pits and a further lMt at 1.8 g/t Au from the Sambung pit. Waste movement (inclusive of lower grade material) is approximately 84Mt from Sihayo pits and 2.8Mt from the Sambung pit.
The revised project life (Stage 1 and 2) is expected to be 10 12 years.
In the JORC resource progress, a 32-hole infill drilling program designed to upgrade the near surface mineralisation within the Sihayo Resource from Indicated to Measured status has been completed. The drilling program covered all the material expected to be mined in the initial years of the project.
The company is also focusing operation on The Hutabargot Julu prospect, located on the south eastern portion of the 11.5km long Sihayo-Hutabargot mineralised trend or about 10km southeast from the Sihayo-Sambung JORC Compliant Resource of l7Mt at 2.7 g/t Au for 1.5 Moz Au. In the future, an access road could be constructed linking the Hutabargot Julu prospect to the Sambung JORC Resource.
"The Hutabargot Julu has the potential to host high grade gold ore shoots within 10 km of the proposed Sihayo-Sambung CII processing plant. Scout drilling of these targets commenced in November 2012. Two of the three targets have been tested by 11 drill holes for 1,230m of drilling," the company said.
Editing by Er Audy Zandri