Egan Street Resources Ltd (ASX:EGA) has increased the gold resource at its 100%-owned Rothsay Gold Project in Western Australia’s Midwest region to 401,000 ounces.
The 31% increase stems from a combination of successful infill and extensional drilling completed since the last resource update in December 2017 and a reduction of the cut-off grade.
The increased resource comprises 1.42 million tonnes at 8.8 g/t gold, reflecting the high-grade nature of the Rothsay Project and its strong potential to be a low-cost, high-margin project.
Importantly, the key Woodley’s Shear resource has increased to 296,000 ounces of gold, representing 74% of the total resource.
READ: Egan Street Resources attracts $11.9 million to fast-track Rothsay Gold Project
The Rothsay Project has a rich mining history dating back to the discovery of gold in 1894 and includes several phases of mining, most recently by Metana Minerals in the early 1990s.
In May 2017, EganStreet published a pre-feasibility study (PFS) estimating a production of 201,000 ounces over an initial 5.5-year mine life at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of A$1,020 per ounce.
Definite feasibility study due this quarter
The latest resource update is currently being incorporated into a new mine design and schedule, which anticipates larger ore drive development and associated larger mining equipment.
This is expected to have the effect of increased mine productivity with a lower unit cost.
EganStreet’s increased resource estimate will feed into the Rothsay Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS), which is targeted for completion in the current quarter.
Regional exploration program continues
With the increase in the resource, EganStreet is confident that the DFS will deliver a larger mining inventory, with multiple mining zones providing greater operational flexibility and ore throughput.
The company is also continuing its regional exploration program in parallel with work on the DFS.
This work consists of regional assessment of targets to prioritise areas for further work and will involve following up recently completed and historic drilling intersections.
