| Tue 26 Feb 2008, 7:50 | | GBG - Great Basin Gold On Track To Mine 80 000 Au Equivalent |
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GBG
GBG
GBG - Great Basin Gold On Track To Mine 80 000 Au Equivalent
Ounces In 2008
GREAT BASIN GOLD LIMITED
(INCORPORATED IN CANADA AND REGISTERED AS AN EXTERNAL COMPANY IN SOUTH
AFRICA)
(REGISTRATION NO. 2006/021304/10)
SHARE CODE: GBG & ISIN NUMBER: CA3901241057
("GREAT BASIN" OR "THE COMPANY")
GREAT BASIN GOLD ON TRACK TO MINE 80 000 Au EQUIVALENT OUNCES IN 2008
February 25, 2087, Vancouver, BC - Great Basin Gold Ltd. (TSX: GBG; AMEX:
GBN; JSE: GBG) ("Great Basin Gold" or the "Company") today announced that
the Hollister mine development project is on track to mine 80,000 gold
equivalent ounces (73,800 ounces of gold and 361,000 ounces of silver)
under the terms of the existing state and federal permits and recover
66,400 oz of gold and 289,000 oz of silver at a cash cost of
approximately US$400/oz for 2008. Development is progressing to
allow mining of sufficient tonnage to deliver the planned production. The
production will mainly be focused on the Clementine and Gwenivere
veins from which high grades were recently
reported from drifting. 6,000 tons of material that has been extracted
from the Clementine and Gwenivere drifts is currently being shipped to
the Jerritt Canyon metallurgical plant for toll processing.
Although limited production is expected in the current quarter, this is
expected to change. A secondary egress currently under development will
be completed by the end of March 2008, providing access for stoping
operations. Good progress is also being made with the development of the
internal ramp and cross cuts in preparation for the build up of
production in 2009. Capital expenditures of approximately US$34
million are expected to be incurred during the year, mainly on mining
equipment, and underground and surface infrastructure.
The Company has also received the results from metallurgical tests at the
McClelland Laboratories Inc in Reno, Nevada. A composite sample was
prepared from high grade ore generated during development on the Central
Clementine and Gwenivere veins during the fourth quarter of 2007. The
sample was prepared to allow process simulation of future stope
production in the high grade vein ore shoots. Average grades of the
metallurgical test samples completed at the McClelland Laboratories were
7.835 oz/ton gold and 39.43 oz/ton silver. Recoveries for six combined
gravity concentration and direct cyanidation tests yielded 24 hour
recoveries ranging from 94.8 to 98.2 percent for gold and 86.5 to 96.2
percent for silver. Final recoveries for combined gravity and direct
cyanidation tests averaged 98.7 percent for gold and 98.0 percent for
silver. Following these favorable results, alternative milling
facilities are currently being evaluated.
Ferdi Dippenaar, CEO commented "Management is pleased with the progress
made by the team at Hollister. The project could
generate significant revenue and, after allowing for US$32 million for
cash operating costs and US$34 million for capital expenditure,
realize some free cash flow in 2008. The cash cost per ounce is expected
to decrease as production volumes increase in 2009. The Company is
currently reviewing results from the exploration program which were
undertaken over the past 12 months, and plans to update the resource and
reserve statement (from that used in the Feasibility Study published in
July 2007) as well as the cash costs to reflect the current industry cost
environment."
Johan Oelofse, Pr. Eng., FSAIMM, and Chief Operating Officer of Great
Basin, is the qualified person who has supervised the preparation of
technical information contained this news release.
Ferdi Dippenaar
President and CEO
For additional details on Great Basin and its gold properties, please
visit the Company`s website at www.grtbasin.com or contact Investor
Services:
Tsholo Serunye in South Africa 27 (0) 11 301-1800
Melanee Henderson in North America 1 800 667-2114
Barbara Cano at Breakstone Group in the USA (646) 452-2334
No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information
contained in this news release.
Cautionary and Forward Looking Statement Information
This release includes statements that may be deemed "forward-looking
statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of
historical facts, especially those that express expectations of rates of
future gold production, costs and revenues related thereto, implications
of exploration and testing activities and like events or developments are
forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the
expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on
reasonable assumptions, such statements are inherently uncertain and
risky and can never be guarantees of future performance. Actual results
or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking
statements. Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially
from those in forward-looking statements including the nature of mining
activities which are subject to unknown geological conditions and
underground hazards, metals prices, labor conditions, earthquakes and
general economic, market and business conditions. While feasibility work
has been done to confirm the mine design, mining methods and processing,
construction and long-term operation of a commercial mine still depend on
securing environmental, operating and other permits on a timely basis.
For more information on the Company, and the risks it faces Investors
should review the Company`s annual Form 20-F filing with the United
States Securities and Exchange Commission and its home jurisdiction
(Canada) filings that are available at www.sedar.com.
Date: 26/02/2008 07:50:01 Produced by the JSE SENS Department.
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