Page 52 - pd284-July20-mag-web_Neat

DIGGeRs & DeALeRs

Sandfire ready to restart

andfire Resources NL has shrugged off the affects of the COVID-19
Slockdown restrictions to such an extent that it has reinstated FY2020
production guidance just months after withdrawing it.

andfire had removed guidance at the thew Fitzgerald said in the quarterly pres- some extent,” Simich said. “There were
Send of the March quarter as it assessed entation that guidance had been withdrawn hard borders closures in Botswana and that
the impact of the global pandemic on both as a precaution given the uncertainty cre- had an impact. We had to down exploration
operations and marketing but after its De- ated by the pandemic. tools but we could continue to do work in
Grussa copper mine in Western Australia “There is a heightened sense of aware- a study and back office sense; so scoping
continued production unabated and interna- ness in which it is hard to predict the un- studies, feasibility studies and optimisation
tional customers were unhampered by the predictable,” Fitzgerald said. “I think we are work continued remotely.
lockdown, the company chose to reinstate well set but we don’t know what’s around “It will push out by a quarter some of
guidance. the corner and where the impact may be. those key decisions on the project. Where
Sandfire’s FY2020 guidance of 70- But we are in a stronger position than we we were expecting second quarter of this
72,000 tpa copper and 38-40,000oz gold thought. calendar year for those decisions, it looks
at C1 cash costs of $US0.90/lb was rein- “Ports are operating well, customers are more like the third or early fourth quarter.”
stated on May 25, with the company com- operating well and banks are as well. So, it Despite the restrictions in the Southern
fortable about operational performance at is largely pleasing on the sales side.” African nation, Sandfire has continued to
DeGrussa/Monty. On site, Sandfire responded quickly to the advance the exploration story at T3 with the
Managing director Karl Simich told Pay- shifting circumstances, bringing in health company closing in on a maiden resource
dirt TV the reinstatement was testament to and safety protocols at the mine and in tran- for the nearby A4 prospect.
the efforts of the Sandfire team. sit situations, increasing mental health and Speaking on the March quarterly call, Ju-
“The dislocation has been somewhat wellbeing programmes, extending sick and lian Hanna said A4 could represent a step-
of a challenge but now we see ourselves compassionate leave allowances and intro- change for the entire project.
graduating back to the new normal,” Simich ducing testing and self-isolation processes. “It is the first target of many in the immedi-
said. “During the pandemic the company It also worked with contractors (includ- ate area around T3,” Hanna said. “It is very
had to go back to basics and looked at ing maintaining critical payment timing) and rare that you continue to deliver exciting re-
the systems, procedures and practices in consulted with and assisted host communi- sults from the first hole onwards but that is
place. We found that we’d got some very ties. what’s happened at A4. It is different to T3,
solid practices and procedures and when In an operational sense, the company in- more vein-hosted high-grade intercepts,
we had to strip things away and only do es- creased ROM stockpiles, maximised stor- which are apparently continuous.”
sential things, we were still able to operate age capacity at DeGrussa and secured A hit of 18m @ 5% copper and 200 g/t sil-
at the mine site and do things well. additional supplies of consumables and ver during the March quarter demonstrated
“We put in place strict, stringent protocols critical spares. the high-grade potential of the prospect.
to ensure we only had essential people at While DeGrussa has barely missed a “The breakdown of that hole shows very
the operation and found after time people beat, Sandfire’s development projects have high-grade numbers within the vein. So, it
were comfortable with that. We expect to been affected by the lockdown. opens up optionality for a high-grade vein
have a very good operating FY2020 at De- In Botswana, the company is moving system,” Hanna said.
Grussa.” its recently acquired T3 copper project to- Sandfire restarted exploration at the be-
The March quarterly was the first report- wards development, but a final investment ginning of June and with 10 rigs operational
ing period to show the effects of COVID-19, decision has been pushed back to later in by the end of the month Simich said the
but the company still produced 16,000t 2020. company would continue to hit the prospect
copper at 70c/lb. Chief financial officer Mat- “The T3 timetable has been affected to hard,” he said.

Page 52 JULY 2020 aUSTRaLIa’S PaYDIRT