Auric Mining (AWJ) Scoping Study Backs Burbanks Reopening, Munda Restart

Auric Mining (ASX:AWJ) has completed an integrated scoping study that supports re-establishing its Burbanks processing facility and restarting mining at the Munda gold deposit in Western Australia's Goldfields region.

Managing director Mark English said the study provides a clear pathway to becoming a standalone gold producer. “This study is another important step in Auric’s evolution. It shows a clear pathway to becoming a standalone gold producer, with Munda providing the initial feed and Burbanks giving us control of a strategically important processing facility in the Goldfields,” English said on Thursday.

The study draws on results from a starter pit at Munda. Auric mined 202,000 tonnes of mineralised material at 1.84 grams per tonne, of which 126,000 tonnes at 2.46 g/t was processed through third-party gold plants. All gold produced sold at an average price of A$7,178 per ounce, English said.

Burbanks has been redesigned for a nominal 600,000 tonnes per annum throughput rate, allowing it to process all available Munda material over 56 months. The plant is designed to be scalable to 1.2 million tpa through simple upgrades, the company said.

The Munda gold deposit carries a JORC 2012 resource of 4.3 million tonnes at 1.42 g/t for 194,000 ounces, 84% of which is classified as Indicated. Within the study, 93% of material to be processed is Indicated, with 7% Inferred.