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- Junior miner Superior Resources (SPQ) has completed a scoping study for its Steam Engine Gold Deposit Project in Queensland
- The study is designed to assess how economically viable it would be to develop the Steam Engine project as a mining operation
- Superior said base-case economic modelling suggests Steam Engine will deliver $24.2 million in post-tax life-of-mine cash flow over a 21-month mine life
- This is assuming an average gold price of $2200 per ounce and is based on the recently-revised mineral resource estimate of 1.73 million tonnes at 2.2 grams per tonne of gold for 122,000 ounces of gold at Steam Engine
- Superior said it will immediately begin a feasibility study now that the scoping study results are in
- Managing Director Peter Hwang said the scoping study is a “significant step forward” for the gold deposit and the company’s greater Greenvale Project
- Shares in Superior Resources are trading grey this afternoon at 1.2 cents each
Junior miner Superior Resources (SPQ) has completed a scoping study for its Steam Engine Gold Deposit Project in Queensland.
The study was designed as a preliminary technical and economic assessment of the project, essentially as a way for the company to figure out how economically viable it would be to develop Steam Engine as a fully fledged mining operation.
Superior said the study highlighted the opportunity for the company to develop the Steam Engine project as a low capital expenditure (CAPEX), financial and technically robust open-pit mine and toll treatment operation.
The scoping was based on the recently-revised mineral resource estimate of 1.73 million tonnes at 2.2 grams per tonne of gold for 122,000 ounces of gold at the Steam Engine deposit, which itself drew on resource definition drilling taken on across the deposit throughout 2020.
Strong results to underpin a greater project
According to Superior, base-case economic modelling of the project suggests Steam Engine will deliver $24.2 million in post-tax life-of-mine cash flow over a 21-month mine life.
This is assuming an average gold price of $2200 per ounce and basing the mining scenario on an open-cut mining and toll treatment operation.
Superior Resources Managing Director Peter Hwang said the outcome of the scoping study is a “significant step forward” for the gold deposit and the company’s greater Greenvale Project.
“The study has demonstrated the economic robustness of the Project and highlights a low-cost start-up opportunity to generate early cash flow,” Peter said.
“The upside potential is substantial and presents a compelling case to commence a feasibility study and the regulatory approvals processes to enable the commencement of mining,” he said.
The company said now that the scoping study results are in, it will immediately begin a feasibility study alongside other metallurgical testwork and drilling programs.
“We are now confident that Steam Engine is poised to be an operation capable of underpinning a greater Greenvale Project copper, gold and potentially, nickel development strategy,” Peter explained.
“We believe that the substantial mineral endowment at Greenvale, predominantly represented by copper and nickel, together with Steam Engine, represents serious potential to support a centralised stand-alone processing operation.”
Nevertheless, according to Superior’s estimations, it will take around $10 million in funding to develop the Steam Engine deposit.
While the company’s financial position for the March quarter of 2021 has not yet been announced, Superior had just under $3.4 million in available funding at the end of December 2020. As such, Superior will need to raise some funds or lock in some funding partnerships to get the Steam Engine deposit’s development underway.
Shares in Superior Resources are trading grey at 2:16 pm AEDT at 1.2 cents each. The company has a market cap just shy of $20 million.
