Highland Gold doubles Russian project lifespan with new study

Jersey-based firm Highland Gold Mining announced on Tuesday that a definitive feasibility study completed by international consultancy group Fluor showed that its Kekura asset in Far Eastern Russia had an estimated 16-year lifespan.

Kekura's sequential and combined open-pit and underground operations were tapped to contain gold reserves of 2m ounces at a grade of 7g/t in addition to having its original eight-year lifespan from an earlier preliminary feasibility study doubled.

The project was given an expected mill head grade of 7.49g/t for the first nine years of plant operation, and 5.58g/t over the final seven years, with average annual gold production from Kekura being set at of 172,000 ounces for the first eight years of operation and 46,000 ounces for the final eight years.

Highland said Kekura would have a post-tax net present value of $311m and an internal rate of return of 38%, excluding historical costs and based on a gold price of $1,250 per ounce.

As of 1200 GMT, shares had gained 0.41% to 146.60p.