Agreement covers extensive gold surface materials from prior mining activities, including subgrade stockpiles. Pic: Getty Images
Horseshoe Metals gets ready to reel in the cash in option deal for surface gold at Murchison mine
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- HOR grants option to process gold surface materials at Horseshoe Lights project
- Company retains rights to full copper, mixed copper-gold and subsurface copper and gold
- Cash from the deal to support HOR’s copper ore shipping plans
Special Report: Horseshoe Metals has granted an option via subsidiary Murchison Copper Mines to Melody Gold for the right to process gold surface materials for a three-year term at its Horseshoe Lights copper-gold project in WA.
The now 340km2 HSL project is the original copper-gold VMS discovery in the Bryah Basin and sits about 60km west of the legendary DeGrussa copper-gold mine.
Horseshoe Lights previously produced 316,000oz of gold and 55,000t of copper and still hosts an in-situ resource of 128,000t copper at an average grade of 1%, a M15 stockpile resource of 2650t copper at 1.1% and a flotation tailings resource of 6800t copper at 0.48% and 15,300oz gold at 0.34g/t.
Last year, the company flagged plans to start sales of direct shipping ore sourced from existing high-grade stockpiles.
The new agreement covers designated gold surface materials adjacent to the historic open pit at the project, including:
- Four subgrade stockpiles
- The rehandle stockpile
- Gold leach vats, and perimeter
- The gold ROM stockpile; and
- Gold and flotation tailings.
Melody has advised it intends to treat up to 500,000 tonnes per annum in its proposed retreatment of the gold surface material utilising gravity recovery to produce a gold-copper-silver concentrate.
Horseshoe Metals (ASX:HOR) will retain the rights to full copper and mixed copper/gold surface materials, as well as all subsurface copper and gold.
Cashflow to support copper offtake plans
The company has already received a $75,000 option fee, with ongoing consideration comprising of monthly tonnage-based payments on recovered gold equivalent value per tonne. That includes a fixed monthly payment of $50,000 upon commencement of processing.
Cashflows from the gold processing agreement are expected to support the acceleration of HOR’s direct shipping ore copper sales strategy in the near-term.
“Our team has hit the ground running in 2025; this agreement with Melody Gold signalling our clear intention to commercialise the significant and highly valuable copper and gold surface stockpiles at Horseshoe Lights as quickly as possible,” HOR director Kate Stoney said.
“The rebirth of the Horseshoe Lights copper-gold project, driven in the initial stages by the commercialisation of the significant existing copper and gold surface stockpiles represents a fantastic opportunity for our shareholders and we look forward to providing regular updates as our team accelerates this strategy over the coming weeks and months.”
The company is also in discussions with several well-known mining and commodity trading groups interested in copper offtake funding – with an update to be provided shortly.
In addition, HOR has identified several new areas of oxide and sulphide copper targets within 200km radius of Horseshoe Lights, with plans for RC drilling and an historical drill data review in the works.
This article was developed in collaboration with Horseshoe Metals, 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.
