Higginsville Gold Mine
The mine has been owned and operated by Karora Resources since 2019 and is one of two mines operated by the company in Western Australia, the other being the Beta Hunt Mine.
History
The Higginsville mine was in operation in the 1990s, with its mill ceasing work in October 1997. Mining continued until early 2000, with ore being milled at the Chalice Gold Mine. At that time, the mine was owned by the St Ives Gold Mining Company, a subsidiary of Gold Fields, which had also purchased the nearby St Ives Gold Mine from WMC Resources in 2001.
In 2002, Avoca Resources Limited listed on the Australian Securities Exchange and paid A$6.25 million to Gold Fields for its Higginsville exploration project in June 2004. After discovering the Trident deposit in late 2004, Avoca raised $125 million in April 2007 to build a new mine at Higginsville. Also in 2007, Avoca purchased the neighbouring Chalice deposit from Chalice Gold Mines Limited. Gold production at the mine began in 2008 from underground operations, with the first gold pour on 1 July 2008.
Avoca has made headlines in 2009 when it became engaged in a bitter dispute with Ramelius Resources over conflicting takeover bids for Dioro Exploration NL. Avoca eventually had to drop its bid for Dioro, having reached a 44.85% interest in Dioro at the close of the offer on 20 August, short of the 50% needed. Ramelius's offer for the company closes on 8 February 2010. Avoca made a renewed takeover offer for the company in late December 2009. Avoca eventually succeeded in its bid for Dioro and, on 21 April 2010, Dioro was delisted from the ASX.
Avoca, owner of the mine at the time, merged in with Anatolia Minerals Development Limited in 2011 to form Alacer Gold. Alacer Gold, in turn, sold its Australian operations, consisting of Higginsville and the South Kalgoorlie Gold Mine, to Metals X in September 2013 for A$40 million. Metals X took ownership of the mine on 1 October 2013 and operated it through its subsidiary Westgold Resources. In 2016, Metals X and Westgold de-merged, with the latter retaining ownership of the gold mining operations, including Higginsville.
In June 2019, the mine was acquired by Canadian company RNC Minerals from its previous owner, Westgold Resources for A$50 million, half of which was paid in cash and the remainder in shares. RNC Minerals, at the time, already owned the nearby Beta Hunt Mine. RNC Minerals changed its name to Karora Resources in June 2020.
Production
Recent annual production of the mine:
| Year | Production | Cost per ounce |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 131,406 ounces | |
| 2016 | 91,371 ounces | |
| 2017 | 84,595 ounces | |
| 2018 | 55,958 ounces | |
| 2019 | 16,635 ounces | A$1,136 |
| 2020 | 32,770 ounces | A$886 |
| 2021 | 34,338 ounces | A$1,092 |
| 2022 | 54,763 ounces | A$1,179 |
Further reading
Sources
- Place Names Search Results - Higginsville Geoscience Australia website
- The Australian Mines Handbook: 2003-2004 Edition, Louthean Media Pty Ltd, Editor: Ross Louthean
- Western Australian Mineral and Petroleum Statistics Digest 2008 p. 34: Principal Mineral and Petroleum Producers - Gold
References
- ^ "KARORA RESOURCES REPORTS RECORD REVENUE, STRONG EARNINGS GROWTH IN FOURTH QUARTER 2022". www.karoraresources.com. Karora Resources. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
- ^ The Australian Mines Handbook: 2003-2004 Edition, pp. 92-93
- ^ The Australian Mines Handbook: 2003-2004 Edition, page 124
- ^ Avoca seeks $125m for Higginsville mine The Sydney Morning Herald, published: 3 April 2007, accessed: 11 September 2009
- ^ About Avoca Archived 2008-07-18 at the Wayback Machine Avoca website, accessed: 11 September 2009
- ^ Higginsville Archived 2009-05-28 at the Wayback Machine Avoca website, accessed: 11 September 2009
- ^ Response to Dioro’s 8th Supplementary Target’s Statement Archived 2011-02-18 at the Wayback Machine Avoca Resources announcement, published: 17 August 2009, accessed: 6 September 2009
- ^ Ramelius shares rise on strong gold results news.com.au, published: 10 August 2009, accessed: 6 September 2009
- ^ Avoca's bid for Dioro beaten by Ramelius offer business.watoday.com.au, published: 30 July 2009, accessed: 6 September 2009
- ^ Avoca reaches 44.85% at close of Offer for Dioro Archived 2011-02-18 at the Wayback Machine Avoca Resources announcement, published: 17 August 2009, accessed: 6 September 2009
- ^ NOTICE OF INTENTION TO MAKE A NEW TAKEOVER OFFER FROM AVOCA AND UPDATE ON RAMELIUS’S AMENDED OFFER Dioro ASX announcement, published: 4 January 2010, accessed: 6 January 2010
- ^ Removal from Official List Dioro ASX announcement, published: 21 April 2010, accessed: 7 May 2010
- ^ "Anatolia Minerals and Avoca Resources Announce Merger of Equals To Create a New Leading Intermediate Global Gold Producer". www.newswire.ca. 8 September 2010. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
- ^ Latimer, Cole (24 September 2013). "Alacer Gold sells off all its Australian mines". Australian Mining. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
- ^ Evans, Nick (24 November 2016). "Nod for Metals X's gold spin-off". The West Australian. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
- ^ Hosie, Ewen (12 June 2019). "RNC Minerals completes $50m Higginsville acquisition". Australian Mining. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
- ^ "RNC Minerals shares will begin trading Wednesday under new name Karora Resources". The Chronicle-Journal. Thunder Bay. 16 June 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
- ^ "Karora Delivers Record Revenue of $264 Million and Cash Flow Provided by Operating Activities of $106 Million in 2021". money.tmx.com. Karora Resources. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
- ^ "Higginsville Gold Operations (HGO)". Mining Data Solutions. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
External links
- Official website
- MINEDEX website: Higginsville Database of the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety