| Thu 14 Oct 2010, 7:58 | | GBG - Great Basin Gold Limited - Positive initial results in commissioning of |
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GBG
GBG
GBG - Great Basin Gold Limited - Positive initial results in commissioning of
the Burnstone Metallurgical Plant
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")
POSITIVE INITIAL RESULTS IN COMMISSIONING OF THE BURNSTONE METALLURGICAL PLANT
October 13, 2010, Vancouver, BC - Great Basin Gold Ltd. ("Great Basin" or the
"Company") (TSX: GBG; NYSE Amex: GBG; JSE: GBG) announces that the Burnstone
Metallurgical Plant project, one of the final steps in the start-up of the
Burnstone gold mine in South Africa, remains on track.
Successful commissioning of the Semi-Autogenous Grinding (SAG) mill and Ball
mill has taken place. The SAG and Ball mills` commissioning went very smoothly;
they are controlled using medium voltage drives, which offer improved
reliability through the use of high voltage insulate gate bipolar transistors
that are 99% efficient at full load and have a high dynamic response based on
voltage source inverter technology. This is the first application of this
technology in South Africa.
Development muck has initially been run through the system during the test
period to fill lockup areas. Conveyors were run at low speed to assess if there
were any problem areas. All mills and conveyors performed well. A loading bin
was added to the SAG mill conveyor. This part of the mill design provides
additional flexibility, enabling material to be fed into the mills bypassing the
silo. Crushing has been continuing with 3,000 tonnes processed.
The current focus is to commission the gravity circuit, which will be followed
by the Carbon-in-Leach circuit. The first gold pour is expected before the end
of October 2010.
Commissioning of the vertical shaft is progressing well with both conveyances
tested and shaft signaling devices already in place. The shaft is scheduled to
be inspected by the Department of Mineral Resources on Thursday, October 14,
2010 for final testing and licensing.
Ferdi Dippenaar, President and CEO, commented: "Good progress has been made in
the Burnstone Metallurgical Plant. Commissioning of the two mills is a
significant milestone, and attention has now shifted to the remaining
metallurgical plant infrastructure."
Johan Oelofse, Pr.Eng., FSAIMM, Chief Operating Officer of Great Basin and a
qualified person, as defined by Canadian regulatory policy, has reviewed and
assumed responsibility for the technical information contained in this release.
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
Michael Curlook in North America 1 (888) 633 9332
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.
This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking
statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical
facts, that address possible future commercial production, reserve potential,
exploration drilling results, development, feasibility or exploitation
activities and events or developments that Great Basin Gold expects to occur are
forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations
expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable
assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual
results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and
exploration successes, continuity of mineralization, uncertainties related to
the ability to obtain necessary permits, licenses and title and delays due to
third party opposition, geopolitical uncertainty, changes in government policies
regarding mining and natural resource exploration and exploitation, and
continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or
business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not
guarantees of future performance and those actual results or developments may
differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For
more information on the Company, Investors should review the Company`s annual
Form 40-F filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and
its home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedar.com.
14 October 2010
Sponsor
Nedbank Capital
Date: 14/10/2010 07:58:01 Produced by the JSE SENS Department.
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