Positive Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment For Enchi Gold Project
VANCOUVER - Newcore Gold Ltd. reported the positive results of an updated independent Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) completed for the Enchi Gold Project in Ghana. The PEA was prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101) and contemplates a technically simple, open pit mine and heap leach operation processing 6.6 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) utilizing contract mining. The PEA also reflects an updated, pit constrained, Inferred Mineral Resource of 70.4 million tonnes ("Mt") grading 0.62 grams per tonne gold ("g/t Au") containing 1.4 million ounces gold. Only 20,195 meters of drilling from the ongoing 66,000 meter drill program was included in the updated Mineral Resource Estimate. All currencies are reported in U.S. dollars unless otherwise specified.
Luke Alexander, President and CEO, said, "The updated PEA is a notable milestone for Newcore as we look to highlight the value of not only the exploration upside across the district scale property but also the economic value of the current resources that we have defined on the Project. The PEA results indicate that Enchi is an economically robust, low capital intensity, heap leach project with an after-tax NPV5% of $212 million and after-tax IRR of 42% at a gold price of $1,650 per ounce. Importantly, the economics also highlight the quick payback of capital, approximately 2 years after first gold pour. We believe that the Project and economics have a tremendous amount of upside from resource expansion both from shallow, near surface oxide mineralization, but also from the higher-grade structures that we are starting to define at depth. This PEA only includes 20,195 meters of drilling from our ongoing 66,000 meter drill program, and only incorporates the shallow, open pit oxide material defined to date, with the first deeper drilling on the project underway to define the potential for resource growth at depth. We are excited to continue to define the district-scale, multi-million-ounce potential at Enchi and build off the underpinning of value that the updated PEA highlights."