Prodigy Gold (ASX:PRX) is advancing regulatory approvals for a potential mining restart at its Old Pirate Gold Mine, which is part of the company’s Twin Bonanza Project in the Northern Territory.
The company reports that mining and processing under stage three of its existing environmental impact statement (EIS) is now under consideration.
EIS stage three anticipates expanded open-pit operations and processing up to 240,000 tonnes per annum.
Prodigy Gold has also completed its Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act referral, which confirmed that the site may be managed under the conditions of the previously completed EPCB assessment in 2014.
The company also holds a current deemed mining licence for Twin Bonanza, permitting care and maintenance of the project.
It intends to lodge environmental mining licence and water extraction licence applications from now until August, which represent the final outstanding regulatory approvals required to recommence mining.
Managing Director Mark Edwards says the company has been working through the wet season to advance the approval process.
“Prodigy Gold has been busy … commencing and partially completing the process of obtaining approvals for the potential recommencement of mining at its Twin Bonanza Project in the NT,” Edwards says.
“Work will continue on finalising the remainder of the required applications as soon as possible for submission.”
Exploration and ore sorting breakthroughs
Meanwhile, the Department of Lands, Planning and Environment has approved exploration drilling at Old Pirate, marking the first drilling program at the mine since 2015.
Prodigy Gold now plans to drill five to six reverse circulation pre-collar with diamond core tail holes starting this September quarter.
Ore sorting test work has also been completed by TOMRA using X-Ray Transmission technology, which upgraded feed material from 322.30g/t gold (Au) to 2,647g/t Au through single-stage sorting.
The process achieved an 89% mass reduction while retaining a ‘high-grade’ product fraction and rejecting 100% of non-mineralised waste samples.
TOMRA noted a strong density differential in the material, which contains coarse gold and dense sulphide minerals.
“The ore sorting test work results represent an important technical milestone for the Old Pirate Project, highlighting the potential for ore sorting to materially enhance future development opportunities,” Edwards says.
The company plans to conduct bulk ore sorting trials using a 700kg representative sample next.
Old Pirate hosts a JORC-compliant mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 115,000 ounces of gold for 800,000 tonnes of material at 4.5g/t Au.
The resource remains open along strike and at depth.
Prodigy Gold is a greenfields and brownfields explorer focused on targeting and developing gold resources in the Tanami region of the NT.
Write to Paula Fabe at Mining.com.au
Images: Prodigy Gold
