OceanaGold
Encyclopedia
OceanaGold Corporation OceanaGold is a significant Asia Pacific gold producer, with a portfolio of operating, development and exploration assets. Assets are located on the South Island of New Zealand and in northern Philippines. OceanaGold is one of the largest Asia Pacific based, gold producers.
The Company is listed on the Toronto, Australian and NEW Zealand stock exhchnages under the code "OGC".
Mine Reserve Life: 16 Years Project
Capex: US$185 million
Commissioning Q4 2012 Gold Reserves: 1.68 million ounces of gold Copper Reserves: 229,000 tonnes of copper
Mining Method: Open Pit for Life of Mine + Underground sub level open stoping from Year 8 onwards
Average Annual Production over Life of Mine: 100,000 ounces of gold (+45%) and 14,000 tonnes of copper (+69%)
Cash costs*: negative(US$79) per ounce of gold net of bi product credits over the first 6 years, US$356 per ounce of gold net of bi product credits over the life of mine Throughput: Expected to reach 3.5Mtpa by end of 2014 with potential further expansions Strip Ratio: 3.45:1
• Using US$3.00/lb copper. Cash costs over the first 6 years of the mine life are Negative US$79 per ounce
Community Relations and sustainability in the Philippines:
The Company continues to be a proud supporter of health, education and environmental initiatives in and beyond the communities in Luzon. Whether it be school scholarships, health programs, infrastructure construction and agricultural assistance in the Philippines, or public art parks, commercial trout hatcheries, school benefits and sports sponsorship in New Zealand, OceanaGold works hard to set a standard for community involvement in the Australasian mining industry.
Social integrity, environmental diversity and equitable development to provide real lasting value to our communities beyond the life cycle of our projects is at the core of how we manage our business. We pride ourselves on our sustainability achievements and welcome the opportunity to enhance the partnerships with our local communities.
Health: Medical Missions Provide Professional Care Where It’s Needed Most Together with local health units, municipal and provincial government agencies and Red Cross volunteers, OceanaGold has undertaken a number of targeted medical missions in the Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino provinces. The missions bring free professional medical, dental and optical assistance to areas where access to these vital services is limited or non-existent. In addition, community residents also receive free medicine. OceanaGold has sponsored 30 medical missions to over 8,600 local community members since the program was established in 2009.
Education: Scholarship Programs Fostering the Next Generation In partnership with local community groups and educational institutions, OceanaGold has developed a scholarship program. Scholarships are provided to local students to attend a named college or university near the region. Scholarships are based on merit and cover tuition and other school fees. In 2010, OceanaGold awarded a further 46 college scholarships and funded salaries of 15 teachers with responsibility for 599 students. To date, 157 tertiary scholarships have been awarded to Didipio Valley students, 41 of whom have graduated with a university qualification. Areas of study include Environmental Science, Forestry, Agriculture, Chemistry, Education and Hotel and Restaurant Management.
Environment: Reforestation and Agricultural Programs OceanaGold, has developed a highly productive tree nursery at its Didipio Project. Since 2007, more than 250,000 seedlings of various forest and fruit bearing trees have been cultivated and 103 hectares of reforestation plantations have been established. Recently, OceanaGold launched a new reforestation program with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. The initial 50 hectare and 100,000 seedlings commitment also includes funding support at a minimum of six years for the duration of the National Greening Program. In 2011, OceanaGold supplied 4400 disease resistant banana plantlets to the community. A training program on growing and managing the tissue cultured banana production was also conducted in partnership with the Nueva Vizcaya State University.
Community: Employment and Skills Training OceanaGold aims to be the employer of choice in the areas in which it operates. Health and safety of our employees is paramount to our operations and key to our success. The Company provides regular health and safety training to its employees such as first aid and emergency evacuation drills. In the Philippines, the Company is also providing skills and capability training to the local community to manage their own business through delivering programs focussing on business planning and community based participatory planning.
In January 2008, the Frasers Underground mine commenced operation at Macraes. The commencement of Frasers, together with Macraes successful exploration program, has extended the project’s operational life to at least 2017/18 with further upgrades expected through the ongoing exploration programs. In 2010, the Macraes Project produced 182,759 ounces of gold from its Open Pit and Frasers Underground operations. The project also transitioned from contract underground mining to ‘owner mining’ in 2010 resulting in a 9% drop in total underground mining costs and a 14% fall in unit costs per tonne of ore mined. Processing plant recovery rates were another area of improvement reaching 81.3% in 2010, while processing plant throughput was 5.46 million tonnes.
Reefton Project -
The Reefton Project was commissioned by OceanaGold in 2007 and is located six kilometres southeast of the township of Reefton, a historic minin district in the West Coast region of New Zealand’s South Island. The goldfield is historically one of New Zealand’s most prolific gold mining areas, having produced over two million ounces of gold from small scale underground mining from when gold was first discovered in the Reefton area in about 1870 until the last underground mine closed in 1951. The Reefton goldfield is home to two dominant styles of gold mineralisation; high grade coarse native gold associated with minor sulphides in quartz veins and lower grade microscopic refractory gold within sulphides. While the coarse native gold is historically important, the second style of lower grade mineralisation adjacent to the main gold bearing shear zones is the project’s current target.
The Reefton Project comprises a series of open pits developed along a major regional shear structure and its offshoots. The project produces between 75,000 - 95,000 ounces of gold annually from process plant throughputs of 1.6 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) and has a forecast mine life to at least 2016 based on current probable and proved reserves only. In 2010, the Reefton goldfield produced 85,843 ounces of gold and increased its material mined by 9% to 15.24 million tonnes.
The Reefton processing plant also performed well above design capacity of 1.0 million tonnes per year. In 2010, the plant achieved a 27% throughput increase compared with 2009, to 1.62 million tonnes. Process plant recovery at 82.5% was another improvement compared with 81.5% in 2009.
Community Relations and Sustainability in the New Zealand: 2010 Highlights 2010
• 15ha rehabilitation planting and restoration at Reefton completed to date
• 73% operational spend at Macraes and Reefton allocated to suppliers with a base and / or operations in NZ via Sustainable Procurement Policy
• Reclaimed 90% water used in Macraes processing plant
• Macraes Trout Hatchery (est 2004) procued 4500 yearling for release into surrounding lakes and river systems
• Macraes Heritage and Art Park attracted over 3,400 visitors in 2010
• Over NZD 140,000 spent on community development projects
The Company is listed on the Toronto, Australian and NEW Zealand stock exhchnages under the code "OGC".
Philippines mining operations
Definitive Project Design (announced 15 June 2011)Mine Reserve Life: 16 Years Project
Capex: US$185 million
Commissioning Q4 2012 Gold Reserves: 1.68 million ounces of gold Copper Reserves: 229,000 tonnes of copper
Mining Method: Open Pit for Life of Mine + Underground sub level open stoping from Year 8 onwards
Average Annual Production over Life of Mine: 100,000 ounces of gold (+45%) and 14,000 tonnes of copper (+69%)
Cash costs*: negative(US$79) per ounce of gold net of bi product credits over the first 6 years, US$356 per ounce of gold net of bi product credits over the life of mine Throughput: Expected to reach 3.5Mtpa by end of 2014 with potential further expansions Strip Ratio: 3.45:1
• Using US$3.00/lb copper. Cash costs over the first 6 years of the mine life are Negative US$79 per ounce
Community Relations and sustainability in the Philippines:
The Company continues to be a proud supporter of health, education and environmental initiatives in and beyond the communities in Luzon. Whether it be school scholarships, health programs, infrastructure construction and agricultural assistance in the Philippines, or public art parks, commercial trout hatcheries, school benefits and sports sponsorship in New Zealand, OceanaGold works hard to set a standard for community involvement in the Australasian mining industry.
Social integrity, environmental diversity and equitable development to provide real lasting value to our communities beyond the life cycle of our projects is at the core of how we manage our business. We pride ourselves on our sustainability achievements and welcome the opportunity to enhance the partnerships with our local communities.
Health: Medical Missions Provide Professional Care Where It’s Needed Most Together with local health units, municipal and provincial government agencies and Red Cross volunteers, OceanaGold has undertaken a number of targeted medical missions in the Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino provinces. The missions bring free professional medical, dental and optical assistance to areas where access to these vital services is limited or non-existent. In addition, community residents also receive free medicine. OceanaGold has sponsored 30 medical missions to over 8,600 local community members since the program was established in 2009.
Education: Scholarship Programs Fostering the Next Generation In partnership with local community groups and educational institutions, OceanaGold has developed a scholarship program. Scholarships are provided to local students to attend a named college or university near the region. Scholarships are based on merit and cover tuition and other school fees. In 2010, OceanaGold awarded a further 46 college scholarships and funded salaries of 15 teachers with responsibility for 599 students. To date, 157 tertiary scholarships have been awarded to Didipio Valley students, 41 of whom have graduated with a university qualification. Areas of study include Environmental Science, Forestry, Agriculture, Chemistry, Education and Hotel and Restaurant Management.
Environment: Reforestation and Agricultural Programs OceanaGold, has developed a highly productive tree nursery at its Didipio Project. Since 2007, more than 250,000 seedlings of various forest and fruit bearing trees have been cultivated and 103 hectares of reforestation plantations have been established. Recently, OceanaGold launched a new reforestation program with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. The initial 50 hectare and 100,000 seedlings commitment also includes funding support at a minimum of six years for the duration of the National Greening Program. In 2011, OceanaGold supplied 4400 disease resistant banana plantlets to the community. A training program on growing and managing the tissue cultured banana production was also conducted in partnership with the Nueva Vizcaya State University.
Community: Employment and Skills Training OceanaGold aims to be the employer of choice in the areas in which it operates. Health and safety of our employees is paramount to our operations and key to our success. The Company provides regular health and safety training to its employees such as first aid and emergency evacuation drills. In the Philippines, the Company is also providing skills and capability training to the local community to manage their own business through delivering programs focussing on business planning and community based participatory planning.
New Zealand mining operations
Macraes The Macraes Project is the largest gold producing operation in New Zealand. Commissioned in 1990, the project is located 90 kilometres north of Dunedin in the Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island. Mining is undertaken two kilometres east of the Macraes Flat township and is surrounded by farmland. The Macraes area is a mature exploration province with the earliest alluvial mining occurring at nearby Murphy’s Flat in 1862. In 1989, the original Macraes tenements were sold by Golden Point Mining and BHP Gold Mines (New Zealand) to the Macraes Mining Company. After a series of company name changes, OceanaGold become the new project owner in May 2004. Since 1990, the Macraes goldfield has produced approximately 3 million ounces of gold with average annual production of between 150,000 - 200,000 ounces. Today’s operation comprises a large scale surface mine, an underground mine (Frasers) and an adjacent processing plant which includes an autoclave for pressure oxidation of the concentrate. OceanaGold’s mining and exploration tenements at Macraes are extensive and now cover a contiguous area of more than 25,000 hectares.In January 2008, the Frasers Underground mine commenced operation at Macraes. The commencement of Frasers, together with Macraes successful exploration program, has extended the project’s operational life to at least 2017/18 with further upgrades expected through the ongoing exploration programs. In 2010, the Macraes Project produced 182,759 ounces of gold from its Open Pit and Frasers Underground operations. The project also transitioned from contract underground mining to ‘owner mining’ in 2010 resulting in a 9% drop in total underground mining costs and a 14% fall in unit costs per tonne of ore mined. Processing plant recovery rates were another area of improvement reaching 81.3% in 2010, while processing plant throughput was 5.46 million tonnes.
Reefton Project -
The Reefton Project was commissioned by OceanaGold in 2007 and is located six kilometres southeast of the township of Reefton, a historic minin district in the West Coast region of New Zealand’s South Island. The goldfield is historically one of New Zealand’s most prolific gold mining areas, having produced over two million ounces of gold from small scale underground mining from when gold was first discovered in the Reefton area in about 1870 until the last underground mine closed in 1951. The Reefton goldfield is home to two dominant styles of gold mineralisation; high grade coarse native gold associated with minor sulphides in quartz veins and lower grade microscopic refractory gold within sulphides. While the coarse native gold is historically important, the second style of lower grade mineralisation adjacent to the main gold bearing shear zones is the project’s current target.
The Reefton Project comprises a series of open pits developed along a major regional shear structure and its offshoots. The project produces between 75,000 - 95,000 ounces of gold annually from process plant throughputs of 1.6 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) and has a forecast mine life to at least 2016 based on current probable and proved reserves only. In 2010, the Reefton goldfield produced 85,843 ounces of gold and increased its material mined by 9% to 15.24 million tonnes.
The Reefton processing plant also performed well above design capacity of 1.0 million tonnes per year. In 2010, the plant achieved a 27% throughput increase compared with 2009, to 1.62 million tonnes. Process plant recovery at 82.5% was another improvement compared with 81.5% in 2009.
Community Relations and Sustainability in the New Zealand: 2010 Highlights 2010
• 15ha rehabilitation planting and restoration at Reefton completed to date
• 73% operational spend at Macraes and Reefton allocated to suppliers with a base and / or operations in NZ via Sustainable Procurement Policy
• Reclaimed 90% water used in Macraes processing plant
• Macraes Trout Hatchery (est 2004) procued 4500 yearling for release into surrounding lakes and river systems
• Macraes Heritage and Art Park attracted over 3,400 visitors in 2010
• Over NZD 140,000 spent on community development projects