Laneway Resources celebrates Agate Creek milestone with first gold pour

Laneway Resources (ASX: LNY) has marked a major milestone at its Agate Creek gold project in north Queensland, achieving the first gold pour from mining of the asset’s high-grade Sherwood deposit.

The gold pour took place yesterday and comprised three doré bars weighing approximately 22 kilograms of gold and silver bullion collectively.

The bullion was recovered from gravity, intensive leach reactor and cyanide in leach extraction at Maroon’s Black Jack processing plant over the past four days.

During that time, approximately 1,300 tonnes of ore with an average head grade of approximately 15 grams per tonne gold had been crushed, milled and processed through Maroon’s plant.

Laneway entered into a deal with Maroon last October to process up to 100,000t of high-grade Agate Creek ore at the plant, believing that utilising an existing plant would significantly reduce capital costs and time to first production.

The first gold pour from the operation has been achieved within 10 weeks of the grant of the mining lease, and two weeks since mining operations kicked off.

This was followed by first ore being fed into the crushing circuit on 17 April, with processing taking place soon afterwards.

Laneway is confident that material cash flow from mining activities at the Agate Creek high grade project will be aided by recent high prices for AUD denominated gold.

“The expected cash flow will establish a sound financial platform for the company to progress its project portfolio including the Ashford Coking Coal project, its New Zealand gold assets and additional exploration appraisal of the broader Agate Creek project area,” the company stated.

Upcoming drilling

With mining operations underway, the Laneway is also focusing on additional drilling programs at Agate Creek targeting further potential high-grade zones.

Laneway said planning for further drilling was well advanced and noted that upcoming drilling would also incorporate potential extensions of the zones currently being mined.

“Additional exploration will also target other identified mineralised zones that have previously only been evaluated for potential large tonnage low grade processing,” the company added.

The exploration within Laneway’s large exploration tenement area at Agate Creek will be advanced with the objectives of confirming the potential for additional small tonnage high grade zoned deposits capable of being toll treated.

Shares in Laneway jumped 7.1% in morning trade to $0.015.