[miningmx.com] — THE Hidden Valley Mine in Papua New Guinea (PNG) is strategically important for HARMONY GOLD MINING COMPANY LIMITED (Harmony).
“Hidden Valley is Harmony’s first offshore greenfields project, and represents an important step in our group’s strategy for geographical and asset diversification,” said Harmony CEO Graham Briggs at the official opening of the mine on Thursday.
Hidden Valley, which is held 50:50 by Harmony and Newcrest as part of the Morobe Mining Joint Ventures (MMJV), is the first major gold mine to be developed in PNG in 13 years.
Harmony was the initial developer of the project, with Newcrest acquiring an initial 30% stake in July 2008 and formally reaching a 50% stake in the joint venture at the end of June 2009.
According to Harmony’s website, annual production at Hidden Valley is expected to be around 255 000 ounces of gold and 4 million ounces of silver.
In FY2010, during the year in which the mine was commissioned, it produced 61 173 ounces of gold and 222 7171 ounces of silver, achieving a cash operating profit of R16 million.
The mine is expected to build up to full production during the current financial year.
While the development of the project has not been without its challenges, Briggs said the experience gained would stand the company in good stead as it continues to seek growth, both within the MMJV in the Morobe Province and elsewhere in PNG.
PNG contains one of the world’s most prospective geological terranes for porphyry copper-gold and epithermal gold mineralisation.
Harmony continues to grow its exploration portfolio in PNG and in August announced a significant increase in the mineral resource at the Wafi-Golpu porphyry copper-gold project, which is also been explored in partnership with Newcrest.
The mineral resource for Wafi-Golpu now contains 16 million ounces of gold and 4.8 million tonnes of copper. Expressed as gold equivalents, this resource amounts to 38.5 million ounces of gold.
Two new projects – Amanab in the Sandaun Province and Mt Hagen in the Western Highlands Province, are seen as forming a significant portion of Harmony’s future exploration efforts. These are 100% Harmony-owned leases.
