Drilling and Estimation
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Infill and extensional drilling around the SEZ lode area is expected to yield positive results.
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New additional assays to be incorporated into an updated Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) allowing for the reporting of a maiden Ore Reserve later this calendar year.
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Ora anticipates that the drilling undertaken recently at Crown Prince will expand the 240,000-ounce MRE through extensions to the SEZ lode and additional lodes, thus will increase the potential mining inventory.
Pre-development Activities
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Several key pre-development activities were completed during the quarter which will underpin environmental and statutory approval documents for the development of the Crown Prince Project including:
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Soils and Landform Assessment
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Flora and Fauna Survey and Assessment
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Waste Rock Characterisation
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Waste Rock Landform Stability Assessment
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Hydrological and Hydrogeological Assessment including aquifer testing
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Geotechnical Modelling for pit wall angle design
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Ongoing Stakeholder Consultation
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Early in the quarter the Company undertook sterilisation drilling (98 x slim RC holes) in areas designated for infrastructure and waste rock landforms. Mine site layout design and project scope has been well advanced.
Westgold Strategic Alliance
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Ora Gold and Westgold Resources are working towards finalizing an Ore Purchase Agreement for the 240,000-ounce Crown Prince deposit, which has a grade of 4.1g/t Au and is located approximately 33km from Westgold's Bluebird Mill, with a processing capacity of 1.6-1.8Mtpa.
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Westgold's involvement brings operational expertise and possible access to infrastructure and processing facilities, helping to reduce risks and expedite timelines.
Corporate
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Ora finished the September quarter with $3.4 million cash and is well funded to pursue its technical programs for completion of Crown Prince mining proposal submissions which are expected to be made in November 2024.
Ora Gold Limited (ASX:OAU) (“Ora” or the “Company”), a Western Australian gold explorer, is pleased to provide shareholders and investors with an exploration and operations overview to accompany the Appendix 5B for the quarter ending 30 September 2024 (“Quarter”, “Reporting Period”).
During the Quarter, the Company continued to advance the Crown Prince Project (M51/886) part of Ora’s broader Garden Gully tenure package (Figure 1).
To progress Crown Prince towards production the Company is undertaking the technical work streams required to submit a Mining Proposal, Mine Closure Plan, MON2 (PMP), Works Approval and Clearing Permits to the relevant Government departments (DEMIRS and DWER). Data has been collected to facilitate key submission documents for Crown Prince including major studies: Flora and fauna surveys, aquifer testing and modelling, geotechnical and rock properties testing, waste rock characterisation, soil characteristics and sampling.
Ora has also recently completed resource infill drilling which aims to convert resources inside the future conceptual open pit into from “inferred” to “indicated” JORC categories. The latter category underpinning any future ore reserve and production forecast.
Commenting on key outcomes for the Quarter, Ora CEO, Alex Passmore said:
“We are very pleased to report on an active quarter of positive achievements at the Company’s Garden Gully Gold Project.
Crown Prince Mine planning progressed significantly. Site visits and stakeholder consultation were undertaken, technical work streams were well progressed all in preparation for the Crown Prince Mining Proposal submission. We are targeting first production by June 2025. The finalization of the open pit design and ore reserves will follow the next Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) which is due in November. Results from infill drilling have seen the timeline on the MRE pushed out from September from November however we are confident these results will add value.
We anticipate a steady flow of news over the coming months, as results from recent infill and extensional drilling at the SEZ lode are reported. The updated Crown Prince MRE, targeted for release in the coming weeks and in any event by the end of November. The Crown Prince MRE currently totals 240,000 ounces at 4.1g/t Au.
The Westgold Strategic Alliance, entered into in May, has facilitated the rapid development of the Crown Prince Prospect and continues to leverage Westgold’s experience and resources in the region.
The recent increase in the gold price further enhances the economic potential of our projects, highlighting the importance of accelerating Crown Prince’s development to capitalise on favourable market conditions. The coming three months will be pivotal, as we aim to finalize many of the technical work streams for Crown Prince's development, and we look forward to updating the market on our outlook for production as these elements come together.”
About us:
Ora Gold Limited (ASX:OAU) is a mineral exploration and development company which holds a substantial package of tenements in the prolific Murchison goldfield near Meekatharra, Western Australia. The Company is focused on the Garden Gully Gold Project which comprises a 677km2 tenure package covering the Abbotts Greenstone Belt and other key regional structures. The project has multiple gold prospects along the belt with the most advanced being the Crown Prince Prospect. Gold mineralisation in the belt is controlled by major north trending structures and contact zones between felsic and mafic metamorphosed rocks. Crown Prince Prospect is located within a granted mining lease and is advancing towards development.
Contact details:
Jane Morgan