JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Work that formed part of Aim- and TSX-listed Caledonia Mining Corporation’s revised investment plan for its Blanket gold mine, in Zimbabwe, would be completed by July.
As part of its plan the company planned to develop a tramming loop 750 m below surface, which was now at 384 m.
Further, it continued to sink its No 6 Winze shaft to provide rapid access to deeper level resources, only needing 60 m of sinking to achieve the interim aim of 930 m below surface. The winders at No 6 Winze have also been installed and commissioned.
The company also looked to sink the new 6-m-diameter Central shaft from surface to 1 080 m as part of its revised investment plan. Work was in hand to allow presink work to start in July. Two 3 100 kW double-drum winders have been acquired which, once refurbished, would be sufficient for the sinking phase and eventual production up to a depth of 2 000 m below surface.
The new Central shaft would provide access to the current inferred mineral resources below 750 m and allow for further exploration, development and mining in these sections along the known Blanket strike, which is about 3 km in length.
In December, Caledonia published a preliminary economic assessment of the revised plan which concluded that the mine currently had a net present value of $147-million, with an internal rate of return of 267%.