Blanket Mine on track to achieve revised target

Published: 31 July 2017

CALEDONIA Mining Corporation has expressed optimism that its 49 percent owned Blanket Mine in Matabeleland South is still on track to achieve the 2017 revised production guidance of between 52 000 ounces and 57 000oz.

Initially, Caledonia had targeted a production target of 60 000oz by year end but was revised downwards as the mine at the time was not able transport the volume of material that was necessary to achieve the set target.

The Gwanda-based mine is one of Zimbabwe's best performing gold producers.

In an interview with Proactive investors, Caledonia chief executive officer, Mr Steve Curtis, said Blanket Mine could still achieve this year's target despite the mine having produced 25 000oz in the first half of the year. The mine's production figures for the first half were eight percent higher than the comparable period in 2016.

"The spread of production days is weighted towards the second half of the year and traditionally you will see that the second half production is anything between 10, 12 and 16 percent higher than the first half and that is really a factor of number of days that are available for production," he said.

During the first half, the mine experienced logistical challenges that Mr Curtis said they were still being attended to.

"So, if I take the 25 000oz knowing that was coming out of a poor base with poor performance in terms of tonnage movement and look at the current improvement having addressed some of the logistical issues and then apply the factor that we have more days available throughout the second half of the year, makes me feel confident that I can still safely say our target production of 52 000oz and 57 000oz for 2017 is still a very good market guidance," he said.

In 2016, Blanket Mine produced 50 351oz, which was the highest ever at the mine. Despite the downgrade, Caledonia has hinted that this has no effect on Blanket's longer term production guidance of an estimated 80 000oz by 2021 as well as the mine's ability to generate sufficient funds to finance the completion of the Central Shaft project.

In March, the mining group announced it would this year allocate an additional $18 million into Blanket Mine as part of the drive to boost gold output.

Between 2015 and last year, the mining corporation invested $36 million into the Gwanda mine project.
- zimpapers

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