Bellevue Gold Ltd (ASX:BGL) will generate early cashflow from its namesake gold operations in Western Australia after signing a toll-treating agreement with a subsidiary of Genesis Minerals (ASX:GMD) Ltd.
The agreement will see Genesis process material at its Gwalia processing facility this quarter ahead of plant commissioning at the Bellevue Gold Project in the December quarter.
Ore predominantly from the Vanguard open pit will be transported by MLG Oz Ltd about 170 kilometres south to the Gwalia facility along the sealed Goldfields Highway.
Cashflow this quarter
This arrangement will enable Bellevue to generate early cashflow in the current quarter ahead of scheduled processing at the Bellevue Gold Mine processing plant in the December 2023 quarter.
Aerial photo showing the progress of the tailings dam construction and Vanguard open pit.
The cutback is underway at the Vanguard pit, which is being mined and stockpiled during the pre-production period at the mine due to its location within the boundary of the tailings storage facility.
Waste material from this mining is being used to build the dam wall at the tailing facility.
Strong surface mining progress
Bellevue says that surface mining is progressing well with the surface mining contractor NRW Holdings Ltd (ASX:NWH) making strong progress with construction of the tailings storage facility and mining of the open pit.
Trucking and toll treating is expected to be completed during the September 2023 quarter.
Around 100,000 tonnes of ore with an average grade of about 3 g/t gold is planned to be processed by Gwalia as part of this agreement.
Execution of the toll treating agreement will be NPV accretive to the overall project as the open pit material would otherwise have remained on the stockpile until later in the mine life.
Processing plant construction as of July 2, 2023.
Site progress
At the Bellevue Gold Project site, construction of the processing facility continues on schedule and on budget with the plant expected to be ready for commissioning with underground ore in the December 2023 quarter.
Underground mine development also remains on track with the fourth and final jumbo rig now on site and being commissioned.