MINING REFINING

Gold Fields starts production at Salares Norte

Tue April 02 2024

Gold Fields started gold production at the Salares Norte mine in Chile's Atacama region, representing a milestone for the Johannesburg-based company, which expects to produce 360,000oz on average per year between 2025 and 2033.

Construction of the mine was "an incredible feat," CEO Mike Fraser said in a statement, referring to the complexities related to the asset's location 4,500m above sea level and facing winter temperatures of minus 20°C.

This year, gold equivalent production should reach 250,000oz and 580,000oz in 2025, the statement said.

Salares Norte's capital cost increased from about US$1.02bn to US$1.18-US$1.20bn due to delays caused by COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and a higher number of contractors, Gold Fields said.

In addition to increasing Chile's gold production by 40%, the operation will contribute nearly US$800mn in taxes to the treasury during the 11-year mine life and provide 900 jobs. Contracts with 175 local suppliers have been signed so far.

Major innovations of the mine are the use of filtered tailings technology, which will optimize water consumption and recirculate more than 86% of the resource, and remote operation from a control center in Santiago.

In the pipeline is the implementation of a photovoltaic plant to supply clean energy to the operation.

Gold Fields is investing around US$30mn annually in exploration aimed at extending the useful life of Salares Norte.

Source: https://www.bnamericas.com