Latest news with #HorizonMinerals
West Australian
26-06-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Horizon fires up drill rigs at high-grade Coolgardie gold project
Horizon Minerals has hit the ground hard, kicking off a 30,000-metre reverse circulation and diamond drilling blitz at its high-grade Burbanks gold project near Coolgardie. The company is eyeing a revival of the site's historic mine to fast-track standalone gold production by next year. The Burbanks project sits 9 kilometres south of the famed WA mining town and boasts a glittering history. Underground mining from 1885 to 1961 churned out 324,000 ounces at a jaw-dropping average grade of 22.7 grams per tonne (g/t). Wind the clock forward and Horizon aims to breathe new life into the storied mine, armed with a current 6.1-million-tonne JORC resource grading 2.4g/t for 466,000 ounces of gold - and counting. The new two-phase drilling campaign is central to Horizon's broader game plan of firing up its mothballed Black Swan plant so the company can start funnelling in a steady stream of high-grade ore from the end of 2026. Phase one will punch out 45 holes for 15,500m, targeting infill zones between the company's Main Lode, Burbanks North and Birthday Gift deposits. Horizon aims to upgrade its inferred resources to the more reliable indicated category, paving the way for ore reserve conversions and detailed mine planning. The second phase will push the rigs further out, chasing down-dip and along-strike extensions of the high-grade lodes from the old pits, while also probing parallel mineralised structures. Horizon says if the drill program can join the dots and prove up a continuation of mineralisation at depth and along strike, it would constitute a discovery that could open up a whole new chapter for the project. One of the big drivers behind the push into new ground is stellar results from previous deep drilling programs. Standout hits included 0.3m grading 45.4g/t gold from 428m, 7m at 5.51g/t from 130m and 1.55m at 20.43g/t from 301m. These high-grade hits sit well below the old workings, which only reached 140m at the Birthday Gift and 250m at Main Lode deposits when they were in operation. Horizon is also charging ahead with a pre-feasibility study, which should be completed by year's end, to revamp its newly acquired Black Swan plant. The processing facility is central to the company's five-year life-of-mine plan as it looks to transform Burbanks into a fully standalone gold operation. To help fund the study and the new drill program, the company recently completed a jumbo $30 million capital raising at 4.3 cents a share. The company acquired Burbanks through last year's merger with Greenstone Resources. The deal handed Horizon a tasty 5km stretch of strike along the Burbanks Shear, which has been the most prolific gold-producing structure in the entire Coolgardie goldfield. The geology at Burbanks is mostly steep diorite rock bodies inside a unique style of basalt called the Burbanks Formation. The diorite has a high iron-to-magnesium ratio, which turns it into a chemical trap for gold-rich fluids. The difference in how the basalt and diorite respond to pressure has also helped guide where the gold ends up, with most high-grade lodes found either inside the diorite or right where it meets the basalt. Meanwhile, Horizon has been busying itself with production from its two cash-generating gold mining operations at Boorara and Phillips Find. Operations are being managed as joint ventures with Kalgoorlie-based mining contractor BML Ventures under two separate toll treating arrangements. Ore from Philips Find is being processed at FMR Investments' Greenfields Mill, while Boorara's dirt is being shovelled through Norton Gold Fields' Paddington mill. The first 37,000t of ore from Phillips Find and 50,604t from Boorara led to the company banking a wad of cash in March. The joint venture shared in $7.9 million received from the processed Phillips Find parcel, while the Boorara ore generated $4.95 million in revenue before treatment costs. A second batch of 18,676t of ore from Phillips Find has now been processed, generating a 50 per cent share of a healthy $5.8 million in revenue for Horizon from 1132 produced gold ounces. Boorara has also continued to deliver the goods with revenues of $12.8 million for the joint venture so far in the June quarter. With a bulging bank balance, drills now spinning and first assay results due in the September quarter, Horizon's momentum is clearly building. And with multiple lodes still open at depth and along strike, Burbanks could end up being the gift that keeps on giving. Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact:
West Australian
26-05-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Horizon to bump up kitty with $30M capital raise
Horizon Minerals has locked in a $30 million raise at 4.3 cents per share, aiming to bolster the company's finances to complete refurbishment studies on its Black Swan processing plant in Western Australia and fund a range of new exploration and resource drilling programs. The funds raised from local and offshore institutional investors will support drilling expenditure and engineering studies for its coveted Black Swan plant, ahead of an expected influx of cash from its gold mining operations at Boorara and Phillips Find. The Black Swan plant, acquired from Horizon's merger with Poseidon Nickel, may become the jewel in Horizon's crown. It will allow the company to control its processing operations and potentially ramp up the ore feed from myriad deposits scattered around the Kalgoorlie region. Engineering studies will be undertaken to support Black Swan's refurbishment. Horizon initially plans to repurpose the previous nickel plant into a gold processing facility. If the plant can be restarted, it may provide a significant boost to Horizon's processing capacity without the company having to rely on toll-treating arrangements with local mills. A refurbished 2.2-million-tonnes-per-annum processing facility could potentially deliver Horizon a 100,000-ounce-a-year gold operation. An initial $11.8M will be raised in tranche one under the company's available placement capacity through the issue of more than 218 million shares at 4.3c. A conditional placement for the remaining $18.2M from the issue of 422.823 million tranche two shares will be subject to shareholder approval at a general meeting expected to be held in July. In an encouraging sign for the company, each Horizon director plans to participate in the tranche two placement through the issue of shares for a total subscription value of $20,000 each, subject to shareholder approval. Management says the placement introduced several new institutional investors to its company register and will help it accelerate planned exploration and infill drilling programs. The company plans to test its Burbanks deposit for resource extensions, additional to an infill program for resource classification purposes. Similar drill programs will be undertaken at its Crake and Coote deposits. It further plans to plunge the drill bit into a range of targets, including Wilsons, Kestrel, Greater Boorara and Nimbus, and to test additional ground at Phillips Find. Funds are also planned to strengthen the company's working capital position until significant ore is processed from Boorara, which may open the floodgates to a wave of cash with today's gold price hovering near US$3341 (A$5117) per ounce. Retiring company debt is another possible option if sufficient funds remain available. The first tranche share placement is expected to settle on May 29, with shares issued on or about May 30. Horizon recently revealed an updated mineral resources summary that highlights a massive nickel boost from its recent merger with Poseidon. Some 422,000 tonnes of nickel metal now sit within the company's mineral portfolio, which also includes 1.8 million ounces of gold scattered across a range of Goldfields deposits. The deposits include mining at Boorara and Phillips Find, generating significant levels of cash at today's surging gold price. The merger with Poseidon delivered Horizon with a raft of promising nickel projects. The Black Swan project stands out among a group, including the Silver Swan and Golden Swan deposits, the Silver Swan tailings resource and the Lake Johnston and Windarra projects. The resource summary also details a more than handy addition of 20.2M ounces of silver, 104,000t of zinc and 7800t of cobalt. Not wanting to be late to the gold party taking place, Horizon leapt into action to toll treat ore from two of its key gold deposits – Boorara, near Kalgoorlie's Super Pit, and Phillips Find, north of Coolgardie. The first 37,000t of ore from its Phillips Find joint venture and 50,604t from its Boorara mine led to the company banking a wad of cash in March. The joint venture shared in $7.9M received from the processed Phillips Find parcel, while the Boorara ore generated $4.95M in revenue before treatment costs. Horizon appears to have the backing of some large players. Its share registry might generate even more interest if the gold price gets another leg-up. Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact:
West Australian
29-04-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Horizon adds huge nickel resource to Kalgoorlie gold operations
Horizon Minerals has released an updated mineral resources summary that highlights a massive nickel boost from its recent merger with Poseidon Nickel, which has added a huge spread of nickel icing to its Kalgoorlie golden cake. Some 422,000 tonnes of nickel metal now bolster the company's mineral portfolio, which also includes 1.8 million ounces of gold scattered across a plethora of goldfields deposits. The deposits include several currently being mined so the company can benefit from the surging gold price of US$3316 (A$5168) per ounce. The merger with Poseidon has delivered a raft of promising nickel projects to Horizon. The Black Swan project stands out among a group, which includes the Silver Swan and Golden Swan deposits, the Silver Swan tailings resource and the Lake Johnston and Windarra projects. The resource summary also details a solid addition of 20.2 million ounces of silver, 104,000t of zinc and 7800t of cobalt. Black Swan's mineralisation occurs within the Black Swan Komatiite complex, which includes several deposits such as Silver Swan, Cygnet and Black Duck. Black Swan accounts for 170,900t of nickel metal, coupled with a further 7800t in stockpiles at the project, for a total 178,700t of nickel at an overall grade of 0.58 per cent. The Silver Swan resource consists of four narrow, high-grade shoots along the basal ultramafic contact of the Black Swan Komatiite, for a combined 12,940t of contained nickel at an impressive grade of 9.5 per cent. The company's Golden Swan nickel sulphide deposit is also within the Black Swan Komatiite complex, some 450 metres south of Silver Swan. Three mineralised lenses strike north-south and dip steeply east to vertical, with all three near to a depth of 1 kilometre. A 6257t nickel resource presents at a solid 3.91 per cent grade. Previous owner Poseidon Nickel undertook a drilling program at the Silver Swan tailings impoundment in 2018 and delineated a resource comprising 6201t of nickel going 0.92 per cent. The Lake Johnston project contains the noteworthy Maggie Hays deposit, which, among its 2.6Mt of material, includes 300,000t of 'massive' mineralisation grading north of 3 per cent. Its overall resource consists of 52,000t of nickel at a 1.49 per cent grade. The project comes with its own 1.5-million-tonnes per annum concentrator, which will be a handy addition in the event the nickel market fires up again and it becomes a case of game-on. A previous assessment of concentrate produced at the site indicated a quality smeltable product was produced with no expected penalties. Its Windarra project comprises the Mt Windarra area that has economic nickel mineralisation present at the base of the Windarra ultramafics, a 100-300m thick sequence of ultramafic lava flows, overlain by basalts. The nickel tenor of sulphides found within the ultramafic rocks usually grades between a stunning 8 to 16 per cent. Previous mining has taken place at several of the deposits. The last significant discovery by Poseidon was at the Cerberus prospect. Windarra has a total estimated resource of 4.35Mt at 1.64 per cent nickel for 71,500t of metal. Horizon also now holds the Nimbus silver-zinc resource, containing a high-grade component running at 774 grams per tonne silver for 6.4M ounces and 33,000t of zinc grading at a stellar 12.8 per cent. One of the prime benefits to come to Horizon, out of the merger, was grasping the mothballed Black Swan processing facility, near Kalgoorlie, which the company will repurpose as a gold plant. Horizon recently awarded ASX-listed GR Engineering with the scope to complete engineering studies on the plant to have it roar back to life and process the gold-bearing ore from its myriad deposits in the region. The coveted piece of infrastructure was used to process nickel before it was placed on care and maintenance. The refurbished 2.2Mt per annum processing facility could potentially deliver Horizon a 100,000-ounce-a-year gold operation. The plan saves the company some significant capital costs, given management believes the cost to replace the existing Black Swan infrastructure would be about $150M in today's money. All Black Swan's regulatory approvals are in place. Not wanting to miss out on the sky-high gold price on offer, Horizon has charged into action to toll treat ore from two of its key gold deposits – Boorara, near Kalgoorlie's Super Pit, and Phillips Find, north of Coolgardie. The first 37,000t of ore from its Phillips Find joint venture and 50,604t from its Boorara mine led to the company banking a stack of cash last month. The joint venture shared in $7.9M received from the processed Phillips Find parcel, while the Boorara ore generated $4.95M in revenue prior to treatment costs. Horizon is going gangbusters with its gold operations at present. If nickel was to revert to flavour of the month status in the near future, the company would elevate to a whole new level. Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact:
