OBM is putting the pedal to the metal with expansions at its Riverina and Sand King deposits at Davyhurst. Pic via Getty Images.
Mining
Special Report: A further 1,711m of development has been completed at Ora Banda Mining’s Riverina mine during the March quarter, while an expanded Phase 2 drill program continues to prove Sand King’s potential as a second underground operation.
Goldfields gold miner Ora Banda Mining (ASX:OBM) is up 900% since Luke Creagh, a veteran mining engineer who was COO at Australia’s #1 gold miner Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST), took control mid 2022.
Creagh is spearheading OBM’s DRIVE to 100 project – targeting the production of 100,000oz @ AISC below $1,950/oz for FY25 at the Riverina underground mine, part of the Davyhurst project.
With gold recently smashing through to all-time highs of >$3,500/oz, OBM is well placed as it ramps up production from Riverina underground and drills out Sand King, which has potential to be developed as a second underground mine.
Stoping (the excavation which contains ore being mined) on the first level at Riverina commenced in March in line with expectations with a mining width of 2.2m with minimal dilution of 7%.
Ore development on the second level was well underway by the end of March, with the main decline ~30m away from third-level access.
Underground diamond drilling is continuing with the latest set of assays showing significant gold intersections OBM says highlight the consistency and high-grade nature of the ore lodes, including:
Overall development of Riverina remains strong, with a record 588m completed in March for an overall 1,711m for the quarter as OBM works towards an underground development target of 650m per month.
“The Riverina underground mine will soon fulfil the role of the primary producing asset at Davyhurst, taking over from the Siberia open pits,” OBM managing director Luke Creagh says.
“The mine is now well advanced with stoping coming online and impressive grades coming back from the infill drilling and face sampling.
“We are pleased with the rate of progress and look forward to ramping this up to commercial production expected in the June quarter and seeing the full potential benefit of the stoping tonnes and grade reaching the processing plant.”
Recent drilling has led to a newly discovered high-grade lode system, with intercepts up to 17g/t in the north of the Sand King project area which OBM says combines well with the previously discovered discrete high-grade lodes in the south.
That success has led the company to expand the Phase 2 program and commit to Phase 3, which aims to expand the known resource and to further build the deposit’s resource base.
Work has commenced on a resource update that will underpin an upcoming Sand King mining study while infrastructure, hydrological, geotechnical, mining and metallurgical evaluations are well advanced.
“The recent Sand King drilling success continues with a focus on the newly discovered high-grade lode system in the north, hidden from surface under the gently dipping ultramafic unit,” Creagh says.
“We are currently advancing the mining study to determine the potential for Sand King to become the second underground gold mine for the Davyhurst project.”
This article was developed in collaboration with Ora Banda Mining, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
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