PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Junior gold miner Norseman Gold on Monday announced that its namesake mine, in Western Australia, would be placed on care and maintenance in July.

A review of the operation saw the company reduce staff numbers at the Norseman gold mine to 33 in January this year, to meet the operational requirements of the mine.

The company’s mining focus had remained on the Bullen and Harlequin underground mines, and contract miners were engaged to increase productivity at both operations.

Mining was also undertaken at the North Royal underground operation, which also employed mining contractors.

Norseman said that contract mining at Bullen would be completed during May this year, while the current production schedule at Harlequin and North Royal saw operations there being completed by the end of June.

At this time, the Norseman gold project would be placed on care and maintenance.

Bullen, Harlequin and the North Royal operation were expected to produce a combined 6 000 oz to 8 000 oz of gold during the remaining operations.

Meanwhile, Norseman has restarted its exploration activities in hopes of finding a new orebody that would underpin the company’s operations on a long-term basis. The company has over 180 tenements in Western Australia, covering 854 km², and little detailed exploration over these tenements have been conducted in the past 20 years.

The company has sought independent expert advice as to which of its tenements would host the most promising exploration targets, which would be funded from cash generated by the Norseman gold mine.

However, the company warned that it would need to source additional funding if the surplus cash from operations proved insufficient.

Norseman was currently struggling to maintain its working capital requirements, and was reliant upon major shareholder Tulla Resources to continue as a going concern.

The company’s shares remain suspended on the ASX, as it ponders viable solutions to its financial difficulties, including possible third-party toll treatment agreements at its Norseman operation.