| Wed 4 Apr 2012, 11:00 | | PAN - Pan African Resources Plc - Ground-breaking event marks the start of |
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PAN
PAN
PAN - Pan African Resources Plc - Ground-breaking event marks the start of
construction of Pan African`s Barberton Tailings Retreatment Plant
Pan African Resources PLC
(`Pan African` or the `Company`)
Incorporated and registered in England and Wales under
Companies Act 1985 with registered number 3937466 on 25 February 2000
AIM: PAF/JSE: PAN
ISIN: GB0004300496
4th April 2012
Ground-breaking event marks the start of construction of Pan African`s
Barberton Tailings Retreatment Plant.
Pan African has today commenced bulk earthworks for the construction of its
Barberton Tailings Retreatment Plant ("BTRP"), to be constructed on the
Barberton Property, adjacent to the current Bramber tailings dam.
The commencement of bulk earthworks marks the start of the civil work that
will entail bulk excavations for creating the terracing of the BTRP which will
become the foundation for the mechanical construction of the Carbon-in-Leach
tanks, scheduled to commence in June 2012.
Management contractor firm, Basil Read-Matoma, which designed the plant and
will procure and construct it, has established itself on site with a temporary
office. The team will be on site for the next two years, until the
commissioning of the plant, which is scheduled for April 2013, ramping up to
full production in August 2013.
Jan Nelson CEO of Pan African Resources was on site to break ground and
noted: "The beginning of construction on this plant resembles a mirror image
of our successful Phoenix platinum project. The BTRP is no more complex than
Phoenix but is a much larger scaled project and will enable 100 tons of feed
an hour, compared to the current 30 tons an hour at Phoenix. We have the same
highly skilled team from Basil Read-Matoma dedicated to this project who will
work together with our management team at Barberton. I am therefore confident
of the same outcome for a successful commissioning in April 2013."
ENDS
About the project
The BTRP comprises a total resource of
654koz (13.7Mt @ 1.38g/t) and a
reserve of
248koz (13.7Mt @ 0.56g/t)
The BTRP has been designed to treat 100,000 tons tailings per month through a
Carbon in Leach circuit using electro-winning and smelting to produce a
saleable product. Current tailings from the Fairview Concentrator and the
Fairview BIOX( Registered) plant totalling 14,000 tons per month will be
routed via a pipeline to the BTRP for treatment and 86,000 tons per month will
be reclaimed from the Bramber tailings storage facility .
The electric power requirement of 6000kW to the BTRP will be supplied via an
overhead 11kV line from the South African electricity utility, Eskom.
At a gold price of ZAR400,000 per kilogram Phase One of the project indicates
an NPV of GBP27 million, at a total cash cost of ZAR194,000 per kilogram
(ZAR114 per ton) over the life of the project. Capex is estimated at GBP27
million (ZAR325 million) over a three year period. Phase One is expected to
retreat 1.2 Mt of gold tailings per annum, with a total life of project
production of 160, 000oz of gold at an average recovered grade of 0,54g/t.
This would increase the annual production profile at Barberton by
approximately 20,000 oz per annum.
Enquiries
South Africa UK
Pan African Resources RBC Capital Markets
Jan Nelson, Chief Executive Officer Martin Eales / James Kelly
+27 (0) 11 243 2900 +44 (0) 20 7029 7881
One Capital, JSE Sponsor St James`s Corporate Services Limited
Sholto Simpson / Megan Young / Phil Dexter
Nicholas Tyler +44 (0) 20 7499 3916
+27 (0) 11 550 5000
Vestor Investor Relations Gable Communications
Louise Brugman Justine James
+27 (0) 11 787 3015 +44 (0) 20 7193 7463
Date: 04/04/2012 11:00:01 Produced by the JSE SENS Department.
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