Mining Intelligence and News
Australia

Dry River South (Surveyor UG) Mine

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Categories

Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
StatusCare and Maintenance
Commodities
  • Zinc
  • Lead
  • Copper
  • Gold
  • Silver
Mining Method
  • Longhole open stoping
  • Avoca
Production Start... Lock
SnapshotIn a tumultuous turn of events, Queensland-based mining company Aurora Metals has collapsed, leaving a trail of debts totaling approximately $170 million. KordaMentha, the appointed administrator, is currently working through Aurora Metals' financial records.

Aurora Metals' collapse came after WA mining services company Emeco (ASX:EHL) took legal action to protect its interests. The company had provided ongoing care and maintenance services to one of Aurora's mothballed mines in Chillagoe, North Queensland.

The company's assets, which include underground mines such as King Vol and Mungana, as well as processing plants at Mt Garnet and Chillagoe, are currently under care and maintenance.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Aurora Metals Ltd. 100 % Indirect
The Aurora Metals' assets, which include underground mines such as King Vol and Mungana, as well as processing plants at Mt Garnet and Chillagoe.

Grant Thornton has announced that the newly appointed receivers and managers of Aurora Metals have announced the sale of the base metals company and its assets.

Deposit type

  • VMS

Summary:

The Dry River South Deposit zinc, lead-rich polymetallic orebody is a sheet of massive pyritic sulphides that dips at a shallow angle to the ESE and plunges gently to the SSW. Massive pyritic sulphides lie along, and just below, the upper contact between highly altered felsic volcanics and relatively unaltered hanging-wall metasediments and extend for up to 250 m down-dip and approximately 800 m down-plunge. The orebody reaches a maximum thickness of about 15 m in structurally thickened domains. The orebody is delimited to the west by late faulting and an extensive body of quartz feldspar porphyry. Down-dip and down-plunge limits are defined by a decrease in sulphides. To the north, the DRS orebody is cut by a complex array of late faults including the NE-trending Andesite Fault. This is interpreted to represent the first stage of structural separation of the DRS orebody from the Surveyor orebody, which lies about 600 m to the north. Access is via a portal and decline from the Surveyor Mine open pit.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Production

Since 2018 financial year (which started on July 1, 2017), the Consolidated Tin Mines Ltd. is provided combined data for Dry River South and Mount Garnet mines. Mining operations recommenced at the Mount Garnet mine in July 2017 and at the Dry River South - in May 2018.
CommodityUnits202020192018
Lead t  ....  Subscribe1,433*
Copper t  ....  Subscribe951*235*
All production numbers are expressed as metal in concentrate. * Combined production for Mount Garnet Mine and Dry River South (Surveyor UG) Mine

Operational metrics

Metrics202020192018
Tonnes processed  ....  Subscribe189,069 t111,348 t
Annual ore mining rate  ....  Subscribe300 kt

Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNamePhoneProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Jul 11, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ........... Subscription required Nov 7, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Jul 11, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Jul 11, 2023

Aerial view:

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