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DIGGeRs & DeALeRs ReVIeW Comprehensive Supply
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Green and gold with a hint of Africa

The Diggers & Dealers Gala Dinner attracted
another full house as the industry joined together
to acknowledge the 2021 award winners

n the strongest indication yet that Diggers both been awarded the GJ Stokes Memorial el-copper-gold prospect in March 2020 has
I& Dealers is shaking off its reputation as a award. seen it develop into a plus-$2 billion company.
parochial West Australian gold conference, If IGO’s nomination represented a deviation The award is given to the most impressive
this year’s “Digger” and “Dealer” titles were from the commodity norm at Diggers, West junior company on the Diggers programme
rewarded for work outside Kalgoorlie and di- African Resources Ltd’s (WAF) confirmation and while Chalice’s multibillion dollar value
vestment of a gold project respectively. as Digger of the Year was the most dramatic would seemingly exclude it from the field,
IGO Ltd received the Dealer of the Year geographic shift in the awards night’s long such has been the rapidity of its rise, it was
accolade for its gold-for-lithium trade which history. still considered “emerging” when the list was
saw the company sell its 30% share of the WAF was handed the award for the almost put together.
Tropicana gold mine to Regis Resources Ltd seamless construction, commissioning and With a maiden resource due in the com-
for $904 million. IGO was quick to reinvest the ramp-up of its Sanbrado gold mine in Burkina ing months and corporate interest in Julimar
funds, ploughing the cash into a $1.9 billion Faso. It is the first African-focused company strong, it could be that managing director
acquisition of a 25% share in the Greenbush- to receive the award. Alex Dorsch and chairman Tim Goyder will
es lithium mine and be eyeing off the other
49% interest in the as- categories in future
sociated Kwinana lithi- years.
um hydroxide plant. The GJ Stokes Me-
The transactions morial award honour-
cemented IGO’s tran- ing significant and last-
sition from diversified ing contribution to the
miner to a dedicated mining industry went
battery minerals pro- to Steve Coughlan,
ducer. The move is executive chairman of
far from an ESG-only diverse mining servic-
strategy. The com- es business Byrnecut
pany produced record Mining.
financial performance Coughlan co-found-
during FY2021 with ed Byrnecut as an
revenue of $912 mil- Cover stars and winners: West African Resources (Digger), IGO (Dealer) and Chalice underground contract
lion, NPAT of $164 Mining (Best Emerging Company) have all featured on the cover of Paydirt in the last year miner in Kalgoor-
million, free cash flow lie in 1987 and has
of $363 million and net cash of $528 million. Executive chairman Richard Hyde formed since overseen its expansion to nine diverse
Those numbers were driven by the flag- the company more than a decade ago, iden- businesses operating globally with turno-
ship Nova nickel-copper-cobalt mine which tifying the tenements, designing the green- ver exceeding $1.5 billion and operating in
performed above guidance (producing 7,887t fields exploration and eventually leading the underground mining, shotcreting, drilling,
nickel-in-concentrate and 3,538t copper-in- company through Sanbrado’s development. equipment hire, mine design and feasibil-
concentrate) below the cash cost guidance First gold was poured at Sanbrado in March ity, indigenous training and health and safety
of $1.85/lb. 2020 and the operation’s ramp-up has been management.
IGO’s recognition gives it the trifecta of so successful that it expects to produce more The Media award went to Peter Ker of the
the three major Diggers & Dealers awards. than 280,000oz gold in 2021. All of this was Australian Financial Review, the fifth time a
In 2011 it was recognised as Digger of the achieved amid both a global pandemic and journalist from the financial newspaper has
Year for its nickel and base metals operations ongoing security concerns in Burkina Faso. been recognised in the category.
in Western Australia and founding manag- The Best Emerging Company award inevi-
ing director Chris Bonwick (2016) and larg- tably went to Chalice Mining Ltd whose rapid
est shareholder Mark Creasy (2019) have rise since discovering the Julimar PGM-nick-

Page 30 SePTeMBeR 2021 aUSTRaLIa’S PaYDIRT