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Australia

Kanmantoo Mine

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Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Copper
  • Gold
  • Silver
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Kanmantoo Open cut mining was completed in May 2019 and the processing of ore stockpiles completed in March 2020.

In 2020 Hillgrove Resources commenced exploration and economic studies to evaluate the potential for an underground operation to be developed.

The Kanmantoo underground project is fully permitted and has all of the infrastructure already in place, including an operational 3.6Mtpa processing plant, and a tailings storage facility with plenty of spare capacity.

In mid-2023 the underground commenced development with a single decline towards the base of one of the pits. In early 2024, the processing plant was recommissioned, and copper production commenced.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Hillgrove Resources Ltd. 100 % Indirect
Hillgrove Copper Pty. Ltd. (operator) 100 % Direct
Hillgrove Copper Pty Ltd operates the Kanmantoo Copper Mines.

Hillgrove Copper Pty Ltd (Hillgrove) is a fully owned subsidiary of Hillgrove Resources Limited.

Deposit type

  • Epithermal

Summary:

The copper-gold deposit is part of the Kanmantoo Trough, which is the youngest of a succession of extensional sub-basins developed within the Adelaide Geosyncline. The Kanmantoo orebody comprises three main mineralised zones: Main, O’Neil/Nugent and Emily Star. Each of the ore zones contains an oxide, transition and primary sulphide ore component.

The Main Zone is hosted by a garnet-andalusite-biotite schist within the Cambrian Kanmantoo Group. Copper mineralisation occurs as chalcopyrite within a complex series of northern trending steep northeast plunging pipes and lodes 3 to 80 m wide (Figure 5.4) (Resource Evaluations, 2006). Mineralisation is characterised by chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite and magnetite with lesser pyrite. In the Emily Star Zone, mineralisation is characterised by chalcopyrite and pyrite. Mineralisation in the O’Neil/Nugent Zone is associated with a garnet-chlorite hydrothermal alteration zone with quartz veining. In comparison with the other zones, the O’Neil/Nugent Zone is enriched in gold.

Sulphide becomes less common with distance from the ore zone indicating there is likely to be broad zones of non-sulphidic waste rock outside of the main mineralised blocks. Across the ML area, there is a distinct weathering zone of approximately 15 m depth that appears to be completely oxidised. This oxidised zone is an important source of non-acid-forming (NAF) material suitable for use in encapsulation of the potentially acid-forming (PAF) waste material.

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

CommodityProductUnits2018201720162015
Copper Metal in concentrate M lbs 50333038
Copper Concentrate kt 95676075
Gold Metal in concentrate oz 6,0036,78511,5186,790
Silver Metal in concentrate oz 161,592110,551104,042114,399

Operational metrics

Metrics2018201720162015
Annual milling capacity 3 Mt
Ore tonnes mined 5,728 kt3,915 kt2,839 kt3,542 kt
Waste OP 7,557 kt14,388 kt17,350 kt12,332 kt
Total tonnes mined 13,285 kt18,303 kt15,171 kt20,892 kt
Tonnes milled 3,324 kt3,427 kt3,197 kt4,104 kt

Production Costs

CommodityUnits20182017
C1 cash costs Copper USD 2.09 / lb   2.33 / lb  

Financials

Units20182017
Revenue M AUD 202.4   127.1  
After-tax Income M AUD 29.5   -14.1  
EBIT M AUD 27.6   4.4  
EBITDA M AUD 44.3   16.2  

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNamePhoneProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ........... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 15, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Jun 1, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 15, 2024

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2018
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2017

Aerial view:

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