Tinashe Makichi
GURUVE – Eureka Gold Mine has been re-opened after a capital injection of $60 million and has plans to produce at least 140 kg of gold per month.
The mine which suspended full scale operations in 2000 but had a brief opening in 2005, was officially re-opened by President Emmerson Mnangagwa and is looking at reaching full production in the next 18 months.
Eureka Gold Mine process director Mark Evans told Business Times on the sidelines of the official opening that the company is currently refurbishing the plant and new mine designs have since been completed.
A fully refurbished plant with new equipment will require $25 million.
The gold mine was re-opened after the acquisition of a majority stake in its parent company Delta Gold Zimbabwe by AIM listed, Vast Resources Plc through its 25 percent-owned Dallaglio. Previous shareholders were Alpha Resources Ltd and Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa Limited. The transaction provided Vast with an indirect 23, 75 percent interest in Eureka.
“We have just purchased the mine so there is a lot of planning and purchasing and orders have been made; design work has been done. We have done a lot of clearing and refurbishments are being done on the existing plant. Within 18 months we will be in full production.
“The plant alone will require about $25 million and the life of mine is about 17 years but we want to do it faster. When we start production we will do 100 000 tonnes per month of ore which equates to 140 kg of gold a month,” said Evans.
President Mnangagwa said the reopening of the mine offered an opportunity for it to make a meaningful contribution to the national gold output which is expected to reach 100 tonnes per annum in the next five years.
“Equally important is the need to gradually increase the employment capacity of the mine and foster a mutually beneficial relationship with the communities around its operations.
“The injection of $60 million into the resumption of the mine is testimony to the confidence that investors have in the bright future of our country. I was invited by Delta Gold Zimbabwe to officially open Eureka mine which had been closed for over a decade,” said President Mnangagwa.
The President said the re-opening of Eureka mine symbolises the positive response to the efforts by Government to resuscitate every sector of the economy.
Eureka mine had historical investment in excess of $30 million in the late 1990s. It was developed as a modern gold mine in 1999 designed to produce approximately 70 000 ounces of gold per annum from an open pit before an underground operation was established. The mine was operated during 1999-2000 after which operations were suspended.
