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Gold exploration and development company, Ora Banda Mining Limited (ASX: OBM), based in Perth, Australia, has announced an update to the Mineral Resource for the Waihi Prospect, which is one of the 5 advanced priority deposits located within the Company’s Davyhurst Gold Project.
The Waihi Mineral Resource (Indicated and Inferred) has increased by 190% from the previously reported 0.9 Mt @ 2.4 g/t Au for 71,000 ounces of contained gold to 2.46 Mt @ 2.6 g/t for 206,000 ounces of contained gold. Consequently, the Company’s total Mineral Resource is now at 23.8 Mt @ 2.6 g/t Au for 1.99 million ounces of contained gold.
The Upgraded Resource also -
- Represents 170% increase in Indicated Resource ounces from previously reported 62,000 ounces; and 82% of the Mineral Resource ounces now report to the Indicated category.
- Comprises Open Pit Resource 2.1 Mt @ 2.4 g/t Au for 159,000 oz Au; and Underground Resource 0.4 Mt @ 3.8 g/t Au for 47,000 oz Au.
- Has a strike extent of 900 metres and depth of 220 metres.
The Waihi open pit Mineral Resource estimate is based on a gold price of AUD 2,400 per ounce, a lower block cut-off grade of 0.5 g/t Au and is physically constrained to the area within an optimum AUD 2,400 per ounce open pit shell that extends to a depth of 140 metres. Besides, the Mineral Resource estimate is limited to the area beneath the optimum AUD 2,400 per ounce open pit shell but with a higher block cut-off grade of 2.0 g/t Au to reflect the increased cost of underground mining.
Source: ASX announcement 4 Jan 2020
“This very robust resource increase for Waihi is an excellent platform on which the development of viable mining operations at Waihi can confidently be planned. Our long-held view that Waihi would be a key component in start-up phase of the larger Davyhurst Gold Project has been significantly enhanced by this result.” said David Quinlivan, Ora Banda Managing Director.
The recent update is a result of the successful completion of a 65 RC drill hole (6,313 metres) and 15 Diamond drill hole (3,656 metres) resource definition and extensional drilling program at Waihi by Ora Banda. Also, the this focussed infill drilling program has led to the increase in the higher confidence Indicated component by 107,000 ounces (170%) to 169,000 ounces.
The previously reported Mineral Resource for Waihi prospect was derived from an unconstrained Resource model whereas the new Resource estimate has been derived following the application of various constraints and modifying factors.
Detailed mine design work to define the optimum economically viable mining envelope for an open pit at the Waihi deposit is currently in progress. Besides, additional work streams including subjecting Waihi ore to a range of metallurgical tests, geotechnical studies to ascertain optimum open pit wall angles and environmental studies required for the approval process have also now commenced.
About Waihi Prospect
Waihi deposit is one of five key priority mining targets, located ~3 km from the gold processing facility (Davyhurst Processing Plant @1.2Mtpa). In the late 1990s, Waihi was mined using open pit methods and again in the early 2000’s delivering total production of 740,000 tonnes @ 2.4g/t for 56,000 ounces. The latest resource definition drilling, both extensional and infill, was aimed at increasing geological understanding and provide additional drill support for a robust mineral resource estimation (MRE). An overview and cross-section of Waihi is shown in Figure 1 and 2 respectively.
For an eye over Ora Banda’s calendar year 2019, read- Looking back on Gold explorer, Ora Banda Mining’s calendar Year 2019.
Stock Performance: Ora Banda’s market capitalisation is around AUD 111.42 million with ~ 586.42 million shares outstanding. On 4 February 2020, the OBM stock settled the day’s trade at AUD 0.180. Besides, OBM has delivered positive returns of 2.70% Year-to-date and 11.76% in the last three months.
