Emerald Resources (EMR.AX) has released an updated resource estimate for its Okvau gold project. The total reserves currently stand at 14.5 million tonnes at an average grade of 1.5 g/t for a total of 700,000 ounces of which 600,000 ounces are located within a pit at an average grade of 1.7 g/t gold. Emerald also published an updated mine plan and now anticipates the all-in sustaining cost per produced ounce of gold will be just US$966/oz despite having to work around a strip ratio of 6.8:1. In the current quarter, Emerald anticipates to produce 25,000-30,000 ounces of gold at an AISC at $1100-1200 due to the temporarily higher strip ratio and lower grade in the mine plan.
The resource update at Okvau pushes Emerald’s global resources to 3.05 million ounces of gold across all categories of which 2.04 million ounces are in Cambodia where the Okvau and Memot projects are approximately 100 kilometers apart. The resource and reserve update at Okvau confirms the company’s expectations that resources will be replenished on an ongoing basis thanks to additional drill programs to expand the pit and chase mineralization at depth.
Disclosure: The author has no position in Emerald Resources. Please read the disclaimer.
