Petropavlovsk might announce decision on Krasnoyarsk assets in H1 2012
MOSCOW. Oct 14 (Interfax) - Petropavlovsk, a gold mining company whose main assets are located in Russia's Far East, might announce plans concerning its Krasnoyarsk greenfield projects in the first half of 2012, a company official told Interfax.
Strategic director Alya Samokhvalova said the company is now in the process of making a decision about the future development of assets and will be ready to announce its plans to the market in the first half of 2012.
According to materials VTB Capital analysts prepared on the basis of meetings with Petropavlovsk management during the Russia Calling! forum, one of the growth options that the company is considering is to develop the small - 50,000-100,000 troy ounces, or 1.5-3.1 tonnes of gold per year - Krasnoyarsk assets, which are expected to be relatively inexpensive to develop and would produce gold using heap leaching technology.
In Krasnoyarsk Territory Petropavlovsk holds the licenses to the Vysokoye lode gold deposit, as well as the Verkhnetissky and Troeusovskaya properties. Vysokoye has estimated JORC indicated resources of 0.5 million ounces of gold in 14.3 million tonnes of ore, with a grade of 1.1 grams of gold per tonne, and inferred resources of 1.51 million ounces in 43.8 million tonnes of ore, with a grade of 1.07 grams per tonne, according to the company's report for 2010.
The probable resources of the Olenka segment of Verkhnetissky are estimated at 0.54 million ounces of gold in 11.1 million tonnes with a grade of 1.51 grams per tonne.
Petropavlovsk, one of the leading gold producers in Russia, is mining the Pokrovsky, Pioneer and Malomyr gold deposits in the Amur Region, and plans to launch a fourth project, Albyn, at the end of 2011. The company's shares are traded on the main floor of the London Stock Exchange.
The company produced 506,800 ounces (15.8 tonnes) of gold in 2010, and the conservative guidance for 2011 is 600,000 ounces (18.7 tonnes).