Petropavlovsk launches Pioneer gold flotation plant

The FTSE 250 company said the new Pioneer flotation plant had the capacity to process 3.6 million tonnes of refractory gold ore per annum.

Once fully operational, the plant was expected to deliver more than 100,000 tonnes of refractory gold concentrate per annum for treatment at the firm’s pressure oxidation (POX) hub.

It said the Pioneer flotation plant doubled its capacity to process refractory gold ore which, including the existing Malomir flotation plant, now stood at 7.2 million tonnes per annum.

The plant was expected to become fully operational by July, and would produce about 60,000 tonnes of concentrate in 2021.

Petropavlovsk said the construction of a third line at the Malomir flotation plant was on track, and would add an additional 1.8 million tonnes of flotation capacity per annum from the third quarter of 2022, bringing the total combined group capacity to nine million tonnes per annum.

The board said the launch of the Pioneer flotation plant and expansion at Malomir would reduce reliance on the POX hub on treating lower-margin, third-party concentrates.

“The successful launch of the Pioneer flotation plant represents a key strategic milestone for the company,” said chief executive officer Denis Alexandrov.

“We are pleased to have commissioned the facility slightly ahead of the mid-year target we set when I joined the company last year.

“The new plant will enable Petropavlovsk to take full advantage of Pioneer's substantial refractory ore reserves while providing an additional source of own-mined concentrate for our state-of-the-art POX hub.”

At 0837 BST, shares in Petropavlovsk were up 3.21% at 25.74p.