Mincor Resources has extended the mine life at its Kambalda nickel operations in Western Australia to six years, following an initial ore reserve assessment for the Golden Mile zone.
The company declared an ore reserve of 475,000 tonnes at 2.6 per cent nickel for 12,500 t of nickel at Golden Mile, increasing the ore reserve for the northern operations by 58 per cent, and the total ore reserves for the Kambalda nickel operations by 18 per cent.
Given the close proximity of the new mining area to existing underground infrastructure connecting the Long and Durkin North operations, access development is planned to commence to the new area over the course of FY23, with first stoping targeted for late 2023.
The company is pleased with the rapid progress achieved at the Golden Mile to date, with this initial figure coming just 16 months after the commencement of the exploration drilling program, and only three months after the delivery of the initial mineral resource.
Mincor chairman Brett Lambert said delivering an initial ore reserve less than 16 months after exploration drilling first commenced was a remarkable achievement by our geology and mining teams.
“The initial ore reserve for the Golden Mile has not only provided a brand-new mining front for our northern operations, but has also proven the largely untapped potential of this vast exploration space to host significant, economic nickel ore reserves that can be fast-tracked into production utilising extensive existing infrastructure,” he said.