Open pit mining to commence at Black Reef

THE BOURSE WHISPERER: 
Gold-focused exploration and mining company Octagonal Resources has announced it has received regulatory approval to mine a 200,000 tonne open pit on the Black Reef at Wehla in Central Victoria, with mining activities commencing during July and the first gold production expected during September. 


Octagonal’s projects are located in the under-explored areas of two of Australia’s most significant gold producing regions; the Central Victorian Goldfields and the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia.

The Wehla Goldfield is located 60 kilometres from the company’s Porcupine Flat gold processing plant at Maldon, Victoria.

 

Octagonal Resources project locations. Source: Company announcement

Previous drilling in the goldfield has intersected high-grade gold mineralisation; however, the gold grade distribution and structural controls on this mineralisation are not well understood. 
        

Octagonal intends to resolve these issues by mining a trial open pit at Black Reef in an area where a costean returned 14 metres grading 4.6 grams per tonne gold and drilling intersected 5 metres grading 35.4 g/t gold and 5 metres grading 14.9 g/t gold. 


Better understanding of the nugget effect and structural controls on the distribution of gold mineralisation in the Wehla Goldfield is expected to justify a larger open pit mining operation within the goldfield.

The main gold workings consist of a north trending line of reefs; Adelaide, Prince of Wales, Frenchman’s, Petticoat, Black, Bismark and Little Nell.

Recorded production from the Wehla Goldfield is approximately 100,000 ounces of gold.