In the lead up to the Mining the Territory Conference, we are joined by James Fox, Managing Director & CEO of PNX Metals, to talk about the advancements and challenges of the Hayes Creek Gold-Silver-Zinc Project, and what he looks forward to about the event.
PNX Metals has been successfully advancing its flagship Hayes Creek Gold-Silver-Zinc Project in the NT, could you share with us the major milestones achieved recently?
Jame: Sure. At the end of March this year we published a Scoping Study on the Hayes Creek project which found that mining and processing ore derived from both open-pit and underground operations would generate strong financial returns for PNX. We also forward sold a small portion of silver from the project to fund the next stage of development, being a Pre-Feasibility, which we aim to complete by mid-2017.
The exploration team has been gearing up for an active dry season, with a crew undertaking regional exploration, and drilling to commence on gold targets early August.
What have been the main challenges and what are the next stages to advance the project further?
James: Market conditions to fund early stage projects have been challenging. However we are starting to generate some market interest especially in our gold and silver, of which we have a significant amount of in defined resources at the Hayes Creek Project. Zinc kicked above US$1/lb recently which also helps.
We’ll be undertaking extensive resource drilling over the next few months to upgrade the mining inventory and test for extensions to mineralisation beyond the resource boundaries. Metallurgical optimisation work for the Pre-Feasibility is also well underway with the aim of increasing recoveries of gold, silver and zinc, which in turn will improve Project economics.
We are also working our way through the approvals and community engagement process, undertaking regular personal contact with the various stakeholders.
We are delighted to welcoming you as a guest speaker to the Mining the Territory Conference: what are you most looking forward to share with industry peers at the conference?
James: Thank you. The NT Department of Mines and Energy and Geological Survey have been very supportive of our project to date and I’m looking forward to providing them with an update of our activities and forward strategy. It will be good to catch up with other miners and explorers to see how their projects are progressing and what type of challenges they are facing. I’m also looking forward to the conference in general where the NT puts on a great show and continues to highlight why it is a great place to do business.
James will be discussing the Hayes Creek Gold-Silver-Zinc Project is more detail at the Mining the Territory Conference. For more details of the event and to register, please visit the event website.