Focus Minerals Limited (ASX: FML)
ASX RELEASE
11 JUNE 2008
FOCUS DELIVERS
FURTHER HIGH-GRADE GOLD PRODUCTION AT COOLGARDIE PROJECT, WESTERN
AUSTRALIA
5,800 tonnes of
Perseverance ore grading 9.0 g/t producing 1,520 ounces of gold
KEY POINTS
? Focus produces 1,520 oz of gold from
5,800t @ 9.0g/t Au to follow up landmark first commercial gold pour in April
? Total Gold production to date is over 3,500 ozs and 703
ounces silver with development ahead of mining plan and production
forecasts
? Estimated value of gold poured to date is approximately A$3.3
Million based on an average gold price of $A 940/ounce
? Production success to underpin aggressive exploration
campaign targeting additional high-grade resources in the Coolgardie area
Australian-based
gold and nickel company Focus Minerals Ltd (ASX: FML) is pleased to
announce that it has completed its second gold pour, comprising approximately
1,530 ounces, from the Perseverance Gold Deposit - part of its
100%-owned Coolgardie Gold Project in Western Australia.
Following
up from its landmark maiden gold pour on the 29th April ? consisting of
approximately 2,465 ounces gold and 440 ozs silver- the second campaign gold
pour further cements Focus? status as Australia?s newest gold producer, and
also heralds the revival of the historic Coolgardie Gold Field which has produced
over 2.6 million ounces since 1892.
The gold
produced was achieved from processing 5,800 tonnes of Perseverance ore at a
grade of 9 g/t, which, like the earlier gold pour, compares favourably with
the reserve grade for the deposit of 8.3g/t Au. The development of the
Perseverance deposit commenced in April following a positive Bankable
Feasibility Study (BFS) completed last year.
Mill
treatment of the Perseverance ore was flushed out of the mill using 3800t of
low grade stockpile material grading 0.8g/t, sourced from the nearby Three Mile
Hill stockpiles.
Gold
production to date has been solely from development ore, with underground mine
development currently ahead of the original mine plan. Stope production was
initially planned to commence in September 2008, however with development ahead
of schedule stope production is now expected to commence in August.
Based on
the current gold price of approximately $A940 per ounce, the value of Focus?
gold pours to date is approximately $A3.3 million and represents the first
sustainable cashflow from its Coolgardie operations since the Company acquired
its initial interest in Coolgardie tenements during early 2005.
Focus
recently upgraded the Probable gold reserve at Perseverance to an estimated 287,000t
@ 8.3 g/t/Au for a total of 76,000 ounces, and early indications are
that this figure will be improved upon based on the grades already being
produced, which are significantly higher than initial conservative estimations.
?We are
very pleased with the way the gold operations are progressing in Coolgardie, in
particular the grades being achieved which are currently higher than those
planned within the Feasibility Study,? said Focus? Managing Director, Mr Peter
Williams.
?The
current trends in development progress, cost containment and grade indicate the
possibility of enhancements to the original feasibility estimates of project
economics? If these factors continue then the initial 76,000 ounce estimate for
Perseverance will be substantially improved upon leading to enhanced project
economics,? he added.
Mr. Williams
also commented on the flow-on effects of the Company?s thriving gold production
to other areas of the business: ?The ongoing success of our gold production
activities, whilst important in its own right, also serves to strengthen our
position to aggressively explore for additional high-grade gold deposits in the
area.?
ENDS
Released
by:
|
On
behalf of:
|
Nicholas
Read/Jason Cunningham
|
Peter
Williams, Managing Director
|
Read
Corporate
|
Focus
Minerals Ltd
|
Telephone: (+61-8) 9388-1474
|
Telephone:
(+61-8) 9215-7888
|
www.readcorporate.com.au
|
Web: www.focusminerals.com.au
|
COMPETENT PERSON?S
STATEMENT
The information in
this report relating to Resources and Reserves are based on work supervised by
Mr Chuck McCormick who is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and
Metallurgy (AusIMM). Mr McCormick has the relevant experience as a ?Competent Person?
as defined in the 2004 edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of
Mineral Resources and Ore
Reserves in relation to the mineralisation reported on. Mr McCormick is
Exploration Manager of Focus Minerals Ltd and consents to the inclusion of the
material in the form and content in which it appears.
The information in this report that relates to Ore
Reserves was prepared under the direction of Brett Ustick, who is a member of
The Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Brett Ustick is a full-time
employee of Redemption Management Pty Ltd. Brett Ustick has sufficient
experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit
under consideration and to the activity for which he is undertaking to qualify
as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the ?Australasian Code
for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves?.
Brett Ustick consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on
his information in the form and context in which it appears.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ? FOCUS MINERALS LTD
Focus
Minerals Ltd (ASX: FML) is an Australian-based exploration and
development group whose focus is to become a significant gold and nickel
producer in the Coolgardie-Kalgoorlie-Widgiemooltha region of Western
Australia.
Focus
Minerals is the largest landholder in the Coolgardie Gold Belt located in
Western Australia, 560km east of Perth and 35km west of the ?Super Pit? in
Kalgoorlie-Boulder. More than 2.6 million ounces of gold has been produced from
the Coolgardie gold belt alone since 1892. Focus holds the mineral rights to more
than 210sq km of tenements including Measured, Indicated and Inferred Resources
exceeding 1.65 million ounces of gold as well as the 1.2mtpa Three Mile Hill
processing plant.
Focus
Minerals is also fast tracking development of its wholly-owned Nepean Nickel
Project (current estimated resource totaling 591,300t @ 2.2% Ni) located 25km
south of Coolgardie. Focus has a view of recommencing mining operations from
the historic production centre in 2008
READ CORPORATE
Public Relations
Corporate Communications
T: (+61-8) 9388-1474 | F: (+61-8)
9388-1472 | E: info@readcorporate.com.au | Web: www.readcorporate.com.au
PLEASE NOTE:
This
e-mail and any attachments may contain confidential and/or privileged material
and is for the intended addressee(s) only. If you are not an intended
addressee, you must not use, copy, retain, disclose or distribute this
information. Please notify the sender immediately by return e-mail and delete
the message from your system. If you believe that this message constitutes a
Commercial Electronic Message (CEM) under the Spam Act 2003 and you wish to
unsubscribe please contact the originator of this message with the subject line
of unsubscribe.
Note:
Virus scanning is carried out on all incoming and outgoing email, but cannot be
guaranteed to be timely, secure, error or virus-free. To protect against
computer viruses, e-mail programs may prevent sending or receiving certain
types of file attachments. If you are having problems please check your e-mail
security settings to determine how attachments are handled.