KALGOORLIE (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Westgold Resources has pulled the trigger on the Great Fingall mine, some 5km southwest of its Cue operation and 28km from its Tuckabianna processing hub in Western Australia.

The company is expected to spend an average of A$30-million in the 2024 and 2025 financial year to bring the project into production, with fist ore expected in the first half of 2025.

Great Fingall will have an initial eight-year mine life, and would produce some 45 000 oz/y of gold at an all-in sustaining cost of A$1 801/oz. The operation would take Westgold’s group production to 300 000 oz/y, and at a gold price of A$2 600/oz would generate revenues of A$996-million.

The base-case feasibility study estimated that the project would have net cash flows of A$306-million, a net present value of A$184-million and an internal rate of return of 53%, with a pay-back period of 4.3 years.

Westgold said on Wednesday that the modest capital expenditure for the project was capable of being fully funded by the company’s operational cashflow.

“Great Fingall is one of four one-million ounce historic producing mines in Westgold’s portfolio and the commitment to its development underpins Westgold’s confidence in the Murchison region,” said Westgold MD Wayne Bramwell.

“At steady state it will be a long-life, high-grade, high-margin underground mine, producing more than 45 000 oz/y a, with first ore production in the first half of 2025. Our base case is conservative and focuses on virgin reef extensions only. Even on this basis, the returns are compelling.

“Significant upside exists from high-grade flat structures and remnant ore that we will develop past as we push the decline to the virgin parts of this high-grade orebody. These opportunities and the additional 250 vertical metres of reef depth extensions intersected by Westgold drilling has not yet been included in the current evaluation or design. Critically, Westgold is fully funded to undertake this development from operational cashflows. The first cut in the Great Fingall decline is scheduled for the second quarter of 2024, and will herald a new beginning for this iconic mine.”

Great Fingall produced some 1.2-million ounces of gold between 1891 and 1929, with openpit mining between 1995 and 1999 delivered a further 82 000 oz of gold, and two subsequent openpit campaigns in 2022 delivered a further 54 000 oz of gold, leaving the pit floor 170m below surface with underground decline access established.