West Wits adds mining rights to expand its 924,000oz Qala Shallows gold deposit

Prospecting right application for tenement area PR10839 south of Qala Shallows has been accepted
Environmental Authority endorsement given for tenement PR10730
Qala Shallows has already secured cornerstone investment of US$26m – almost 50% of development costs already

Special Report: West Wits Mining’s Qala Shallows is expecting more ground for exploration after acceptance for prospecting were granted by South Africa’s mining authorities.

The Qala Shallows underground gold deposit is part of West Wits Mining’s (ASX:WWI) greater Witwatersrand Basin Project in the Central Rand Goldfield and contains 4.28Moz @ 4.58g/t Au.

The Central Rand Goldfield is home to some of the largest known gold reserves in the world and has historically produced >1.5 BILLION ounces of the shiny.

WWI has advanced Qala Shallows’ development plans lately, securing expressed debt facility funding for almost 50% of construction costs which sit at ~US$52m.

West Wits Mining

WWI has now been granted acceptance to pursue environmental authorisation for PR10839 south of Qala Shallows and has another application PR10730 with an granted endorsement for the environmental authorisation and currently under consideration by South Africa’s Department of Mineral Resources and Energy.

The primary objectives behind the two PR applications are twofold: to augment the mineral resources complementing the Mining Right footprint awarded in July 2021, and to significantly extend the operational lifespan of West Wits’ Kimberly Reef activities at its Qala Shallows operations.

Presently, the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) for Qala Shallows supports an ore reserve of 351,400oz of gold with a total production estimate of 924,000oz over its 17.7yr life-of-mine (LOM) spanning 17.7 years.

Approval of both PRs would have the potential to considerably extend the WBP’s overall LOM and may provide essential support for the Company’s pursuit of establishing an independent treatment facility at Qala Shallows in the future.

What’s next for Qala Shallows?

As part of the mine development process, WWI is pursuing environmental authorisation for PR10839 in alignment with South Africa’s National Environmental Management Act.

Once complete, WWI will engage with landowners and affected parties as well as submit a basic assessment report to the DMRE within 90 days from the date of acceptance.

This article was developed in collaboration with West Wits 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.