Ora Banda Mining hits first ore at Sand King underground gold mine

Ora Banda Mining intersects first ore at Sand King underground gold mine
Grade control drilling has confirmed multiple high-grade lodes
Mine on track to deliver first stoping ore in Q1 2025

Special Report: Ora Banda Mining has intersected first ore at the Sand King underground gold mine, just four months after portal establishment, and is on track for first production in Q1 next year.

The mine is part of the Davyhurst gold project in WA and, together with the Riverina Underground, is the centrepiece of the company’s Drive to 150 project, with an annual production outlook of 140,000oz to 160,000oz in FY26.

Underground diamond drilling for grade control is also underway and to date has confirmed multiple discrete high-grade lodes and additional bulk tonnage opportunities.

Notable grade control results to date include:

6m at 9.5 g/t including 3.5m at 13.7 g/t;
11.3m at 4.1 g/t including 0.5m at 10.7 g/t;
3.5m at 13.2 g/t including 1.1m at 37.8 g/t;
1.3m at 17.6 g/t including 1.0m at 21.9 g/t; and
3.4m at 6.7 g/t including 0.6m at 21.1 g/t.

The company also recently conducted a small surface exploration drilling program at Sand King North, extending the known lodes along strike.

Intercepts included:

8m at 5.4 g/t including 2.7m at 13.6 g/t;
1m at 31.3 g/t including 0.5m at 61.0 g/t; and
13.6m at 2.3 g/t including 0.4m at 13.4 g/t.

Ramping up to 60kozpa

The project remains on track to deliver first stoping ore in Q1 2025, with the steady state production of ~60kozpa expected to commence in the June quarter.

“Reaching first ore at the Sand King underground mine is exciting, especially considering that this milestone has been achieved less than four months after establishing the portal, and 14 months after the first drill hole targeting underground was completed,” Ora Banda (ASX:OBM) managing director Luke Creagh said.

“The grade control and surface drilling has confirmed, enhanced and extended known mineralisation and we consider this to be at the early stages of unlocking the full potential of the Sand King mineralised system.

“As the ounce production from Sand King increases month-on-month, we are set up for a strong second half of the financial year.

“The combination of Riverina and Sand King high-grade ore delivers a step change to our production profile and cashflows, with a production outlook of 140,000oz to 160,000oz in FY26.”

The project has a resource estimate of 3.4 million tonnes at 2.8g/t for 304k ounces and an underground ore reserve estimate of 537k tonnes at 3.2g/t for 55k ounces.

Notably, the resource is open in all directions and has only been drilled to a depth of ~300m below surface, as such the underground mine plan incorporates design elements such as drill drives and infrastructure to benefit from any resource conversion or extension.

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.