[ON BIOTECH INTERNATIONAL LIMITED LETTERHEAD]
23 March 2015
ASX & MEDIA RELEASE
THUNDERBOX FEASIBILITY STUDY, FULLY FUNDED DEVELOPMENT APPROVAL & GOLD HEDGING / FINANCE FACILITY
The Directors of Saracen Mineral Holdings Limited (ASX:SAR) ("Saracen" or the "Company") are pleased to advise that the Board has approved the development of our 100% owned Thunderbox Operations ("TBO") following the completion of the Feasibility Study ("FS"). The development of Thunderbox will see the Company achieve its medium term vision of becoming a mid-tier gold
producer with gold production doubling to approximately 300,000 ounces per annum by FY2017.
Highlights:
• Completion of the FS for the Thunderbox Operations - Stage 1;
• FS shows robust project economics for Stage 1 over an initial 4.5 year mine life;
• Board approval for the development of Stage 1, a large open pit on the Thunderbox deposit delivering 597,000 ounces with All in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of A$1,032/oz;
• Gold Hedging program of 140,000 ounces at an average price of A$1,520/oz entered into with Macquarie Bank Limited ("MBL") to underpin the initial capital investment;
• Project Capital requirements of A$65 million is fully funded from existing cash reserves and free cashflow generation from our Carosue Dam Operations ("CDO");
• Project Loan Facility of A$33 million with MBL available as a standby;
• Project Development to commence in August 2015 with prestrip mining in Zone "A";
• Mill production to commence in July 2016 following a plant refurbishment period of 4 months;
• Project statutory approvals well advanced with full permitting expected by April 2015;
• Key personnel in place comprising much of the same team who successfully completed the Carosue Dam refurbishment and resumption of mining in 2009;
• Commencement of mining will coincide with the completion of the Whirling Dervish open pit, allowing a seamless integration between operations;
• Various opportunities to extend the Project life beyond Stage 1, including a bulk underground mine at Thunderbox and satellite open pit opportunities.
Managing Director, Raleigh Finlayson, said:
"The development approval for the Thunderbox Operations is a significant milestone for the Company that will see Saracen produce gold from multiple operations for the first time in our history. More importantly, this will realise our vision of joining the likes of Northern Star, Regis, OceanaGold and Evolution as mid-tier gold producers, with production in excess of 300,000 ounces per annum following the commencement of Thunderbox production in FY2017.
"Significantly, the doubling of our production profile to 300,000 ounces per annum will be achieved through organic growth from our Thunderbox and Carosue Dam Operations and will be delivered using internal cashflows.
"Thunderbox Stage 1 is forecast to deliver A$195 million of free cashflow over an initial 4.5 year mine life that endorses the company's acquisition of the Thunderbox operations in January 2014 for a total cash consideration of A$23 million and royalty payments of 1.5% capped at A$17 million (which has been factored into the net free cashflow generation of A$195 million).
"The development and delivery of Stage 1 will see over 550,000 ounces produced over an initial 4.5 mine life, with All in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of A$1,032/oz. Stages 2 and 3 have the potential to see production extend to in excess of one milllion ounces over an eight year mine life at an average production rate of 126,000 ounces per annum with average AISC of A$1,057/oz.
"We have put the old team back together again to develop Thunderbox with Lee Stephens, Wayne Heedes and George Viska all heavily involved in the refurbishment and the resumption of mining at Carosue Dam in 2009 and now again at Thunderbox in 2015."
"The scope of development and mining operations at Thunderbox is very similar in many ways to what we have successfully implemented at Carosue Dam, specifically the refurbishment of the Thunderbox 2.5 million tonne per annum CIL plant, which is very similar in condition and scope to the 2.4 million tonne per annum Carosue Dam plant refurbishment which we completed under budget and on schedule in 2009.
"Open pit mining at Thunderbox will be conducted using a similar operating model as we have successfully employed at Carosue Dam, specifically in recent years at Whirling Dervish which has been a fantastic asset for Saracen and we'll continue to reap the financial benefits over the next 18 months. Whirling Dervish has been the cornerstone asset for Saracen over recent years, however we believe that Thunderbox is even more robust on the basis of scale, resource confidence, geotechnical competency, profitability and overall predictability. Table 1 below highlights the scale and significance of the Thunderbox open pit relative to Whirling Dervish, with more than double the gold production at 34% higher grade to be produced from Thunderbox over the next 4.5 years."
To continue reading this noodl, please get the original version here.