NAUTILUS Minerals is making excellent progress as it continues with preparations for the seafloor mining project in the territorial waters of Papua New Guinea. The company aims to commence operations at the Solwara 1 project site in quarter one of 2019, mining copper, gold and silver.

K92 MINING will use the majority of C$16.554 million raised in placements to fund exploration and development of the Kainantu Gold Project. Ongoing underground drilling at the Irumafimpa and Kora deposits is returning strong results.

THE Bougainville region’s autonomous government (ABG) has lifted a decades-long moratorium on mining and exploration in sections of the region. The ABG says its bureaucracy has built the skills to handle applications.

A REDUCTION in all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) at Newcrest Mining’s Lihir Gold Project during the March quarter helped the company achieve its lowest overall all-time AISC of US$713 per ounce, which was 5.1% lower than the previous quarter. AISC at Lihir in the period was $822, down from $883 in the December 2016 quarter and $950 in the September 2016 quarter.

THE Ramu Nickel-Cobalt Project remains on track to achieve annual output of more than 32,000 tonnes of nickel and 3300 tonnes of cobalt during 2107. This follows a record month in May when 3068 tonnes of nickel and 292 tonnes of cobalt were produced.

GOLD Mountain Limited intends to undertake a diamond drilling program at the Wabag area of its flagship Crown Ridge project in Enga Province of the Highlands Region. The drilling is expected to begin in the current quarter and will test multiple gold targets with the aim of completing a maiden JORC resource estimate.

GEOPACIFIC Resources continues to focus on assessing optimisation opportunities at the Woodlark Gold Project on Woodlark Island as it drives the joint venture project along the path to production. Many of the project’s technical aspects have been investigated in detail and Geopacific is now examining areas such as modular construction techniques, refining the processing plant flowsheet and technology.

THE Simberi Gold Project of St Barbara produced a record 30,430 ounces during the March quarter at an all-in-sustaining cost (AISC) of A$1025 per ounce. This exceeded the 28,057 ounces produced in the previous quarter at an AISC of A$1277 per ounce.

AN addendum to the feasibility study for PanAust’s Frieda River Copper-Gold Project has upgraded resources and added reserves. Measured and indicated copper resource at the HITEK (Horse-Ivaal-Trukai-Ekwai-Koki) deposits increased 8% while ore reserves increased 13%.

AS Geopacific Resources continues to confirm the economic potential of the Woodlark Gold Project, the company is making an off-market takeover for its joint venture partner in the project, Kula Gold. The company believes there is compelling commercial logic in bringing ownership of the project under a single management structure.

WORK on the underground incline drive from the Irumafimpa mine towards the Kora deposit is under way at K92 Mining’s Kainantu Gold Project in Papua New Guinea. The drive is designed to provide access to the Kora deposit, where K92 intends to start production in the first half of 2018.

PREPARATION of a maiden resource estimate for the operating HGZ Gold Project will enable Crater Gold Mining to refine mining methods for maximum gold extraction. The resource paves the way for increased production with minimal additional capital expenditure or development time.

ERA Resources hopes an agreement with China Nonferrous Metal Industry’s Foreign Engineering and Construction Co Ltd (NFC) will enhance development plans for the Yandera Copper Project. The parties are negotiating final terms of NFC’s appointment to the team of project consultants that will assist Era with pre-feasibility and feasibility studies.

AUSTRALIA’S third largest underground mining contractor PYBAR Mining Services says Papua New Guinea has emerged as a potential new market for the company. The company believes PNG is attractive due to its resilient gold industry and pipeline of expansion projects.

IN August Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML) paid out more than K40 million to Community Mine Continuation Agreement (CMCA) communities under CMCA Extension Agreements. These agreements were signed in December 2012, formalising community consent for the extension of Ok Tedi mine life from 2015 to 2025.

MARINE Assets Corporation (MAC) is moving forward with construction of a production support vessel (PSV) to be used by Nautilus Minerals and PNG partner, Eda Kopa (Solwara) Ltd, for seafloor operations at the Solwara 1 project in the Bismarck Sea. The 227 metre-long vessel is being built at Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding in China.

REPRESENTATIVES of new Coppermoly investor Ever Leap Services have visited the company’s New Britain to familiarise themselves with the company’s two main tenements – Nakru and Simuku. The visitors also assessed the potential to apply their considerable engineering and mining expertise to further development of the properties.

SURFACE extension channel sampling at the Umuna Zone of WCB Resources’ Misima Island Gold-Silver Project has returned strong results. Outcropping surface mineralisation has been identified over significant widths.

PANAUST has registered a Special Mining Lease (SML) application for the Frieda River Copper-Gold Project with the PNG Mineral Resources Authority. The application follows completion of a feasibility study and lodgement satisfies a condition of the exploration licence.

CRATER Gold will resume exploration within the Mixing Zone at the Crater Mountain Gold Project with a view to carrying out diamond drilling in a 300 metre zone between the High Grade Zone (HGZ) mine and the Mixing Zone (MZ). There is no historical data for this section.