AusNiCo announced a maiden JORC-compliant resource estimate for its Taronga project in New South Wales as it continues to work on an updated Pre-Feasibility Study. The new estimate is based on a re-assessment of extensive drill results compiled by Newmont in 1982, and the new JORC tin resource of 57,200 tonnes of contained tin is 14% higher than that calculated by Newmont at an equivalent cut-off grade.
The new resource figures are based on a larger resource envelope of 36.3 million tonnes of ore grading 0.16% tin, 0.07% copper (26,400 tonnes contained metal) and 3.8 grammes/tonne of silver (4.4 M ounces). While 79% of the tin resource is classified as indicated, all the copper and silver resource is in the lower inferred category due to more limited data availability.
Planning to date is based around a large scale ore 3.7 million tpy capacity plant incorporating heavy media separation to upgrade material prior to processing. AusNiCo also notes in a statement that “most drilling was limited to a depth of 200m but limited drilling does indicate potential for continuation of the mineralization at depth, which may trend to higher grade mineralization as the vein widths increase but vein density decreases.”
Regarding the PFS the company says that “Previous feasibility work contemplated the concurrent mining of both zones by open pits, but with the completion of the current resource estimate, the next stage of the Updated PreFeasibility Study will also evaluate sequential mining of the Southern then Northern zones. The Southern Zone is higher grade and, based on historical test work, exhibits somewhat superior metallurgical performance owing to the cassiterite being coarser grained and more easily liberated.”
