Classic is on the final stretch towards becoming a gold producer with the Gekko processing plant now assembled and commissioned using small parcels of ore.

The scalable transportable plant will now be moved to the Kat Gap project to await necessary approvals before the company starts mining operations with the goal of achieving first gold by the end of August.

Classic Minerals (ASX:CLZ) chairman John Lester noted that the commissioning of the plant is a key milestone required to formally transform the company from an explorer to a miner.

“We remain on track to construct and mine at full capacity by the end of July 2021 and we look forward to updating shareholders as additional milestones are reached,” he added.

The company has already secured a mining lease for the project that is valid for an initial 21-year period.

Kat Gap gold project

Kat Gap is 170sqkm south of Southern Cross and has a current resource of 92,869oz of gold at an average grade of 2.96 grams per tonne (g/t).

Testing has already proven that Kat Gap ore is amenable to gravity and conventional cyanide leaching with recoveries of 95 per cent to 96 per cent achieved from both fresh and oxide samples.

Classic will take ore from the project and run it through its Gekko processing plant, which is able to process 30 tonnes of ore per hour and can be scaled up to a Gekko Python-sized plant with processing capacity of 250tph.

Its modular nature allows the plant to be placed close to the ore body, minimising cartage and processing costs.

JT Metallurgical Services (JTMS) undertook the testing and commissioning of the plant and have generated a process flow diagram, process design, electrical load study and mass/water balance for the plant capable of achieving maximum gold recovery.

It will also manage ore processing at Kat Gap.

There is also significant potential to expand resources at the project as drilling at the open-ended deposit has so far returned exceptional results such as 4m grading 76g/t gold including 1m at 304g/t gold from 79m and 10m at 30.77g/t gold from 28m.

 

 

 

This article was developed in collaboration with Classic Minerals, 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.