ASX Round-Up: Resolute Mining and Medusa Mining at a Glance

For investors focused on the resource space, a good way to track companies listed in Australia is to look at the S&P/ASX 300 (INDEXASX:XKO). The index includes all S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) companies as well as about 100 smaller-cap companies, and as of April 2015 accounted for 74 percent of the Australian equities market. Specifically, the S&P/ASX 300 Metal & Mining (INDEXASX:XMM) division is a great source for companies to watch.
The Investing News Network is thus profiling companies on the S&P/ASX 300 Metal & Mining index. This week’s companies are Resolute Mining Ltd. (ASX:RSG) and Medusa Mining (ASX:MML).

Gold-focused Resolute has vast experience in exploring, developing and operating gold mines across Australia and Africa. The company’s flagship Syama gold mine is located in Mali, an open pit mine that is expected to move to underground mining in 2016. Resolute provided results from a revision of the underground prefeasibility study at Syama in June, which confirmed a move to underground mining would produce robust economics at strong cash margins. The study also increased the underground ore reserve to 25.5 million tonnes at 2.8 g/t for 2.3 million ounces and will extend the life of mine to at least 2028. The revised life of mine brought the average cash operating costs down to US$789 per ounce.
Moving forward, decline development at Syama is expected to begin in early 2016 from within the stage 1 open pit, from a portal located 200 meters below the surface, allowing for easy access to underground ore.
Besides Syama, Resolute has two other operating mines: the Golden Price mine in Tanzania and the Ravenswood gold mine in Queensland, Australia.

Also a gold producer, Medusa Mining is solely focused on its operations in the Philippines, which include the Co-O underground gold mine, its 50-percent owned Saugon gold-silver project and the Tambis project, which contains the Bananghilig gold deposit. Last week the company released its annual mineral resource update statement for the year ended June 30.
The Co-O mine’s total inferred and indicated mineral resources are now estimated at 3.5 million tonnes at a grade of 10.2 g/t gold for a total of 1.15 million ounces gold, a drop from the previous year’s 4.34 million tonnes at a grade of 10.1 g/t gold for a total 1.41 million ounces gold. This change was primarily due to mine depletion, plus untreated, mined low grade material.
The Bananghilig Gold Deposit has a total inferred and indicated mineral resource of 24.52 million tones at a grade of 1.44 g/t gold and the Saugon Gold Deposit contains 81,500 tonnes at a grade of 5.97 g/t gold, both of which remain unchanged since 2013.
Medusa also has interest in a number of copper discoveries in the Philippines, including the Lingig (Das-Agan) copper prospect, the Kamarangan prospect and the Usa copper prospect.
 
Securities Disclosure: I, Kristen Moran, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article. 
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