inglés al español Técnico/Ingeniería Minería y minerales / Gemas

Projecting forward, we do anticipate that the strip ratio will increase to forecast levels over the next 12 months. This, we expect, will be offset by a significant increase in ore reserves, as the over call is taken into account. In our modelling we have increased the stated ore reserves to account for the high grades and we have also added extra tonnage to account for the scree (ore that has fallen from the vertical outcrop face). We expect the ore reserves to be significantly increased when they are next updated. The company itself has publicly stated that mine life is likely to be extended by between 2 and 3 years, suggesting that an extra 2 to 3 million tonnes of ore will be added to the ore reserves. The additional tonnage will come from a number of sources. These include the low grade halo, the scree, north-west trending shear zones and, possibly, feeder zones representing the depth extension at Susan. The feasibility study assumed a gold price of US$550/oz, considerably less than the current level of over $800/oz, giving ample scope for including lower grade material in the ore reserves. Minera also has applied for a revised mining licence, allowing production to be increased to 1.5Mt pa. The additional tonnage mined will comprise some of this low grade halo material.

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