Mining Intelligence and News
South Africa

Blyvoor Mine

Click for more information

Categories

Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
StageRestarting
Commodities
  • Gold
Mining Method
  • Blast Hole Stoping
  • Conventional narrow-reef mining
Mine Life... Lock

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Black Economic Empowerment(B-BBEE Commission) 26 % Indirect
Blyvoor Gold (Pty) Ltd. 74 % Indirect
Blyvoor Gold Capital (Pty) Ltd is a registered subsidiary (74%) of Blyvoor Gold (Pty) Ltd. The remaining 26% ownership is held by Black Economic Empowerment entities as required by the South African Mining Charter.

December 15, 2021 - Pan African is pleased to advise shareholders that it has entered into a conditional agreement to acquire the entire issued share capital of Blyvoor Gold Operations (Pty) Ltd (Blyvoor Operations) from Blyvoor Gold (Pty) Ltd (the Transaction).

Three-month initial fatal-flaw due diligence period, following which Pan African can elect to proceed with a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) over the following nine months, to December 2022. Pan African may then, following completion of the due diligence and, if applicable, the DFS, at its sole discretion, elect to acquire Blyvoor Operations for a cash consideration of ZAR110m (US$6.9m at current exchange rates), to be funded from internal cash resources.

Deposit type

  • Conglomerate hosted

Summary:

Gold and uranium deposits in the Witwatersrand Basin are hosted by quartz-pebble conglomerates, which are generally less than 2 m in thickness and developed on laterally continuous unconformity surfaces. These reefs are generally characterised by shallow dips of between 10° to 25° and thicknesses of 1.0 m to 2.5 m that make them suitable for exploitation by means of typical narrow stoping techniques.

The gold deposits of the Witwatersrand Basin are considered to be associated with coalesced fluvial braidplains, where gold was concentrated within braided stream gravels developed on unconformities which have been correlated around the basin.

Most early theories on the origin of gold believed the gold to be deposited syngenetically (placer theory) with the conglomerates or by epigenetic means (hydrothermal origin), but subsequent research by Kirk et al (2004) concluded that metamorphism caused the post depositional local redistribution of gold (modified placer theory).

Generally, gold occurs in native form often associated with pyrite (less commonly pyrrhotite) and carbon, with quartz as the main gangue mineral.

At Blyvoor, two economic placer horizons have been exploited. These are namely the Carbon Leader and Middelvlei Reefs and occur in quartzites of the Main Reef Conglomerate Formation of the Johannesburg Subgroup of the Central Rand Group. The auriferous conglomerates dip uniformly at 22°S.

The Carbon Leader is a high grade, predominantly thin (<40 cm) carbon-rich reef and is the principle economic horizon at Blyvoor. The origin of the carbon is in debate as to whether it originated hydrothermally or from algae. Within the deeper southern section of the Mine, carbon is scarcer and hence likely responsible for the decline in grade.

In the western area, the Carbon Leader is eliminated by a northwest-southeast striking, 1,900 m wide erosional channel. The erosion channel is truncated to the north by the Master Bedding Fault. Its eastern boundary is well defined by mining, while the western boundary is less certain and has only been defined by drilling.

The Carbon Leader is divided into seven facies areas, namely F1 to F7, based on channel width and carbon content. Four types of Carbon Leader are recognised:-
• carbon seam;
• channel reef;
• thin single reef; and
• thick single reef.

Grade generally decreases down dip (south) and towards the west associated with a reduction in carbon.

The Middelvlei Reef is the second economic horizon at Blyvoor and lies stratigraphically 50 m to 75 m above the Carbon Leader. Towards the south, the separation increases due to a minor angular unconformity. The Middelvlei Reef is characterised by lower grades than the Carbon Leader. Owing to the variable payability and presence of sedimentologically controlled pay shoots, the Middelvlei Reef has been mined in scattered payable areas and is present over the whole lease area.

On the Middelvlei Reef, facies areas have similarly been identified using grade, channel direction and reef characteristics.

Reserves

Lock

- subscription is required.

Mining Methods

Lock

- subscription is required.

Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Lock

- subscription is required.

Processing

Lock

- subscription is required.

Production

CommodityUnitsAvg. AnnualLOM
Gold koz 2425,320
All production numbers are expressed as payable metal.

Operational metrics

Metrics
Daily processing capacity  ....  Subscribe
Ore tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Tonnes milled, LOM  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Production Costs

CommodityUnitsAverage
Total cash costs Gold USD  ....  Subscribe
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Gold USD  ....  Subscribe
All-in costs Gold USD  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Gold USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study / presentation.

Operating Costs

Currency2021
UG mining costs ($/t milled) ZAR 1,988 *  
Processing costs ($/t milled) ZAR  ....  Subscribe
Total operating costs ($/t milled) ZAR  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Initial CapEx $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Sustaining CapEx $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Total CapEx $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
UG OpEx $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Processing OpEx $M ZAR 3,742
Total OpEx $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Total Taxes $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Royalty payments $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Gross revenue (LOM) $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
EBITDA (LOM) $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
Net Income (LOM) $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 0% $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 5% $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 10% $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 10.9% $M ZAR  ......  Subscribe

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Lock

- subscription is required.

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 6, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 6, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Mar 1, 2021

Aerial view:

Lock

- subscription is required.