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Description
Positive progress on the development of Ora Gold’s (ASX:OAU) Crown Prince project is a key factor in Argonaut Securities’ recent equity research report issuing a speculative buy recommendation for Ora Gold.
“OAU is making steady progress on its Crown Prince development targeting first production towards the middle of next year. Once in production, we expect Crown Prince to be a high-margin, open-pit operation with a ~2-year mine-life,” the report said,
The report also noted the potential for extending the mine life given recent “encouraging exploration results” at Crown Prince.
“We make a slight price target increase to $0.019 ($0.018 prior) and maintain our speculative buy recommendation,” the report said. The valuation is modeled based on Ora Gold entering production in the second quarter of 2026, with a small but high-grade open pit mine returning cash flows.
Crown Prince (JORC 2012) Mineral Resource Estimate
The project’s prospects are further de-risked by the ore purchase agreement with Westgold (ASX:WGX), the report said.
Key Highlights:
- Diamond drilling for geotechnical studies is currently underway to finalise the open pit designs for Crown Prince. Environmental studies have been completed and metallurgy work indicates excellent free milling material with total recoveries ranging between 98 to 99 percent.
- OAU plans to submit a mining proposal to DEMIRS mid to late H2 of CY2024. OAU’s cash position totalling AU$7 million is expected to fund development work up to a decision to mine. Pre-production capex and working capital requirements for Crown Prince is AU$15 million.
- An updated mineral resource estimate (MRE) is expected in October 2024. Current MRE totals 240 koz at 4.1 g/t gold with 67 percent in the indicated category.
- Despite its relatively small production size, Crown Prince is one of the highest margin development projects, with a resource that includes 164 koz shallow high-grade (5.2 g/t gold) ounces, driving a compelling economics.
For the full analyst report, click here.
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OAU:AU
New Murchison Gold Limited
Investor Insight
For investors with an eye on mining stocks, New Murchison Gold (ASX:NMG) presents a unique opportunity. The company's shallow, high-grade Crown Prince gold deposit, significant land package in the prolific Murchison goldfields, and strategic alliance with established Australian gold producer Westgold Resources position it as a noteworthy contender in the Western Australian gold exploration space. As NMG continues to navigate the path to production, its journey is one that astute investors will watch with keen interest.
Overview
Within the heart of Australia's Murchison gold district, a region host to more than 35 Moz gold endowment (historic production and current resources), stands New Murchison Gold, a forward-thinking gold explorer with a clear strategy to maximise shareholder value driven by a highly experienced management team. The company’s value proposition centres on growing and de-risking its shallow, high-grade Crown Prince gold deposit (part of the company’s Garden Gully gold project) and a strategic alliance with established Australian gold producer Westgold Resources (ASX:WGX), offering a clear pathway to production and cash flow generation.
The Westgold alliance has resulted in a binding ore purchase agreement with Big Bell Gold Operations, a wholly owned operating subsidiary of Westgold Resources. The agreement will underpin production from NMG’s Crown Prince deposit in 2025, and will see the company delivering 30 kt to 50 kt of ore to Westgold per month.Key Project
Garden Gully
New Murchison Gold's flagship Garden Gully gold project is located 20 km northwest of Meekatharra, Western Australia. The project boasts a 677 sq km tenement package that covers the Abbotts Greenstone Belt. The project includes granted mining leases and Native Title agreements in place over the Crown Prince, Abbotts and Lydia prospects. Garden Gully is in close proximity to a number of operating gold mines and existing gold processing facilities.
New Murchison Gold has a strong pipeline of exploration and development prospects at Garden Gully, with the most advanced being Crown Prince.
Crown Prince deposit
The Crown Prince deposit has an updated mineral resource estimate of 2.2 Mt at 3.9 g/t gold for 279 koz, which includes an indicated resource estimate of 226 koz at 4.6 g/t Au. (81 percent of the total MRE). The total also includes the maiden resource for the Southeastern Zone (SEZ) of 1 Mt at 5.2 g/t gold for 164 koz (discovered in late 2022).
The resource is shallow, delineated from surface, remains open at depth and along strike, and located within a 300 m x 200 m area demonstrating strong open pit mining potential. There is significant resource growth potential at new mineralised zones at the northeastern end of SEZ and Crown Prince East (350 m from SEZ).
New Murchison Gold also published strong metallurgical performance from advanced test work at Crown Prince with high recovery of gold through gravity and cyanide leach test work, reporting overall gold recovery rates ranging from 98.2 to 99.8 percent.
Recent high-grade gold intersections at SEZ
Westgold Strategic Alliance
New Murchison Gold announced a strategic alliance and $6 million placement with Australian gold producer Westgold Resources.
The Westgold transaction provides a clear pathway to commercialising Crown Prince in a strong gold price environment, validates the quality of the deposit and enables New Murchison Gold to leverage Westgold’s internal resources, intellectual property and infrastructure to accelerate development.
The primary aim of the strategic alliance is to fast track the development of New Murchison Gold’s Crown Prince deposit into production. As part of the strategic alliance, New Murchison Gold and Westgold has entered into a binding ore purchase agreement (OPA) with Westgold subsidiary Big Bell Gold Operations, for gold produced at Crown Prince. Under the agreement, NMG will deliver 30 kt to 50 kt of ore to Westgold per month with no fixed term. Crown Prince is located only 33 km from Westgold’s 1.6 – 1.8 Mtpa Bluebird Mill.
In addition to the OPA, the strategic alliance may also encompass other strategic collaboration initiatives such as access to Westgold’s expertise and infrastructure. Upon completion of the strategic placement, Westgold will be an 18.7-percent shareholder (undiluted basis) and have the right, but not the obligation to a New Murchison Gold board seat and an equity participation right.
Proceeds from the strategic placement and current cash will allow New Murchison Gold to fast track further resource development, project development and mining proposal workstreams at Crown Prince and continue systematic regional exploration across Ora’s commanding 677 sq km tenure.
Major players are increasingly partnering with junior explorers to secure access to high-grade, quality gold resources. New Murchison Gold's collaboration with Westgold epitomises this movement, setting a blueprint for mutual success in the industry.
Key Focus
The near-term focus for New Murchison Gold will be further resource growth and rapidly advancing project development and mining proposal workstreams at Crown Prince:
- Crown Prince Drilling: Further delineating new high-grade mineralised zones at the north-eastern end of SEZ and Crown Prince East (350 metres from SEZ) and resource definition drilling along strike and below 100 metre vertical depth
- Crown Prince Resource: Updated Mineral Resource Estimate expected in September of 2024.
- Crown Prince Development: progress detailed technical programs, preliminary project development and mining proposal workstreams and agree on an ore purchase agreement and other strategic collaboration initiatives with Westgold
- Regional: Continue systematic regional exploration programs across Ora’s commanding 677 sq km tenure package
Management Team
New Murchison Gold is led by a team of experienced professionals with a diverse set of skills and expertise. At the helm of the company's operations is CEO Alex Passmore, a qualified geologist with extensive corporate finance experience to guide New Murchison Gold's strategic plan. The board is chaired by Rick Crabb, with extensive experience in the legal and mining sectors providing invaluable governance and oversight.
Supporting the company's governance structure, Malcolm Randall serves as a non-executive director, bringing a wealth of knowledge from his tenure in the resource sector, including 25 years at Rio Tinto. Frank DeMarte, director and company secretary, contributes over 39 years of mining industry experience in areas of financial management governance and secretarial practice.
The collective experience of New Murchison Gold's board and management is a cornerstone of the company's success, positioning it to capitalise on the opportunities within the Garden Gully project and beyond.
For further information on New Murchison Gold's strategic initiatives and investment opportunities, sign up for a free investor kit.
