Concentrates are exported through the nearby Port of Geraldton to smelters in countries including China, Japan, Korea and India.
Overview Golden Grove is a world class massive sulphide base and precious metals operation, employing over 800 staff and contractors.
The plant at Golden Grove was first built in 1990, and was acquired by Oxiana, from Newmont Mining Corporation, in July 2005.
Golden Grove consists of the Scuddles and Gossan Hill zinc and copper underground mines and the Scuddles concentrator.
Golden Grove has been in continuous operation since 1990 when production began at Scuddles. Gossan Hill was mined from mid 1998, at the same time the treatment plant at Scuddles was expanded from 0.9Mt/a to 1.2Mt/a. Scuddles was put on care and maintenance in July 2005. The Scuddles mine was reopened in mid 2007 and production commenced on a limited scale.
The Gossan Hill deposits contain zinc and copper massive sulphide mineralisation and also contain associated silver, gold and lead mineralisation.
Mining and Processing The mining method at Golden Grove is sublevel open stoping for the primary zinc orebody. Ore from the Gossan Hill mine is trucked to the surface where it is crushed and delivered to the mill via a 3km overland conveyor. The ore is treated via a two stage grinding circuit followed by floatation using air agitation to separate the sulphides.
Production In 2007 mill throughput for the year reached record levels due to commencement of certain mill improvement projects. In 2007 Golden Grove produced 131,954t of zinc, 15,404t of copper, 48,807oz of gold, 3,165,408oz silver and 8,119t of lead.
Production (contained metal in concentrate) for 2008 is planned to be 135,000t to 145,000t zinc, 20,000t to 25,000t of copper, 50,000oz to 55,000oz gold, 3,000,000oz to 3,500,000oz of silver and 10,000t to 13,000t of lead.
Future Developments In 2007 significant discoveries were made at Golden Grove, which highlights the potential for further additions to mine life and annual capacity. Expansion studies are currently being conducted at Golden Grove to investigate the addition of open-pit mining and possible extensions of the underground mine. These studies aim to increase mine life to beyond 2020.
Market Zinc’s main use is to galvanise steel and it is the fourth most widely used metal in the world. Copper is one of the world’s most useful elements and its main use is in electrical generators, motors, electrical wiring and in electronic goods eg. Radios and televisions.
Golden Grove zinc, copper and precious metal concentrates are exported to smelters in China, Korea, Thailand and India.
