Black Cat Syndicate (ASX:BC8) has completed a Scoping Study that highlights growth opportunities for its Coyote Gold Operation in Western Australia.
The $114.75 million market capitalisation company says there is ‘significant’ potential to grow additional resources at Coyote Central and Bald Hill through discovery and extensional drilling, with mineralisation uncovered at depth below the current mine design and all lodes remaining open.
Black Cat reports the Scoping Study demonstrates a ‘robust’ economic case, mining an initial 200,000 ounces to generate revenue of about $565 million and operating cash flow of $176 million at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,568 per ounce.
Further, the project risk is lowered given the low pre-production capital of $80 million to be funded partly or in full by cash flow generated from Black Cat’s Paulsens Gold Operation.
The release of the Scoping Study comes ahead of the Noosa Mining Investor Conference at which Black Cat will be presenting on 20 July.
Commenting on the study’s outcome, Black Cat Syndicate Managing Director Gareth Solly says: “From only 5 months of drilling since acquisition, we have defined a 5-year mine life at a sustained processing rate 25% higher than previous operations.
Known mineralisation outside the current Coyote Central Resource, proximal to proposed underground development, will be targeted in future drill programs.
The processing rate in the Study is conservative and is limited by the throughput capacity of the CIL circuit. Debottlenecking the CIL circuit would enable the mill to process up to 700ktpa and expedite cash flow from stockpiles generated in years 1 and 2 of mining, containing over 45,000 ounces.
Future studies will refine processing facility design and mining schedules to optimise cash flow. Further near mine and regional discovery drilling has the potential to sustain and increase processing rates.
“Based on the positive results of this Scoping Study, we expect to complete additional targeted drilling as we progress to a more detailed Restart Study”
Based on the positive results of this Scoping Study, we expect to complete additional targeted drilling as we progress to a more detailed Restart Study. Once Paulsens is in operation, focus will shift to potentially sequentially developing Coyote and then Kal East.”
Black Cat notes that a number of early-stage targets have been identified through the reprocessing of geophysical data, soil sampling, and acquisition. Further work is planned to progress these targets.
Black Cat Syndicate is a Western Australian gold exploration company working to grow its portfolio of ‘high-grade’ gold resources in the Eastern Goldfields, Eastern Pilbara, and the Tanami regions.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Black Cat Syndicate Ltd
