Modern Mining December 2018

MINING News

Sanbrado underground contract awarded to Byrnecut

Gold developer West African Resources (WAF), listed on the ASX and TSX-V, has awarded the underground mining con- tract for its Sanbrado gold project in Burkina Faso to highly experienced min- ing services contractor Byrnecut Burkina Faso SARL (Byrnecut), part of the Byrnecut group of companies. “The underground mining contract is a key operational contract for Sanbrado and its award follows the completion of a competitive tender process and extensive due diligence process examining safety, experience and capabilities,” commented WAF’s MD, Richard Hyde. “We are very pleased to award the underground min- ing contract to Byrnecut who have a long history providing underground mining services globally and have current operat- ing experience in West Africa.” Byrnecut Group Executive Chairman Steve Coughlan said: “We are looking for- ward to partnering with West African on the exciting Sanbrado gold project. This project will be our second site in Burkina Faso and the fifth project we have oper- ated in the West African region. “Byrnecut will bring more than 30 years of operational experience to Sanbrado and looks forward to ensuring West African’s targets are met, while providing a safe operating environment for both cli- ent and contractor.” The M1 South underground will kick-off WAF’s mining development at Sanbrado with portal establishment set to com- mence in March 2019. The underground development will access high-grade, free-milling gold mineralisation located directly beneath the proposed M1 South open pit at approximately 120 m vertical. Concurrent mining of the M1 South open-

Drone photo of boxcut progress at M1 South.

level development (7 km); ore driving (2 km and 0,2 Mt) and stope production (1,3 Mt); raise drilling; and cemented rock back fill. Excavation of the boxcut commenced in early November and work is on sched- ule for completion in late February 2019, with portal establishment planned to com- mence immediately thereafter. 

pit ore from surface and underground will accelerate cash-flow over the early years of the Sanbrado mine life, as detailed in the June 2018 Feasibility Study. Works under the underground mining services contract, which has an initial term of five years, include: underground portal establishment for M1 South; decline and

Kareevlei grades exceed expectations AIM-listed BlueRock Diamonds, which owns and operates the Kareevlei diamond mine in the Kimberley region of South Africa, has announced an update on KV1, one of the five known diamondiferous kimberlite pipes at Kareevlei.

mented, “Our current focus at Kareevlei following our recent fundraise is to mate- rially step-up and de-risk our operations with a view to supplying a regular feed of undiluted, higher grade kimberlite. The ore we are recovering from KV1 is very encour- aging in that it is a higher grade than we would have expected in this near surface, diluted material.” The Kareevlei licence area covers 3 000 ha. As at 3 September 2018, it was estimated that the remaining inferred resource from the three kimberlite pipes (KV1, KV2 and KV3) represents a potential in-ground value of circa US$124 million. 

BlueRock is currently mining from two pipes at Kareevlei: KV1 and KV2. It has now processed the first Level 1 (10 m to 20 m below surface) ore from KV1 total- ling 20 500 tonnes resulting in grades of between 3,90 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht) and 5,11 cpht at an average grade of 4,51 cpht, exceeding expectations. Adam Waugh, CEO of BlueRock, com-

December 2018  MODERN MINING  15