Aureus Mining’s New Liberty open-pit gold mine in northwest Liberia reached commercial production on March 1 and produced 4,500 oz of gold during the first two weeks of the month. The product was shipped to the MKS PAMP refinery in Switzerland for smelting and refining. New Liberty is currently scheduled to have an eight-year life and to produce 119,000 oz/y during its first six years of production.
New Liberty will mine and treat 1.1 million mt/y of primarily unweathered ore. The plant flowsheet incorporates two-stage crushing, ball milling, gravity concentration and a carbon-in-leach circuit. As of early March, the plant was operating at a stable run-rate, and recovery levels were exceeding 90%.
The New Liberty project has estimated proven and probable mineral reserves of 8.5 million mt hosting 924,000 oz of gold at a grade of 3.4 g/mt. The reserves are contained within planned open pits that have depths of between 180 and 220 m below surface. Measured and indicated mineral resources total 9.8 million mt hosting 1.1 million oz of gold at a grade of 3.63 g/mt. Inferred resources total 5.7 million mt hosting 593,000 oz at a grade of 3.2 g/mt.
The New Liberty orebody remains open at depth.
