| Norseman Gold Mine | |
|---|---|
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Norseman Gold Mine
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| Location | Norseman |
| State | Western Australia |
| Country | Australia |
| Owner | |
| Company | Norseman Gold Plc |
| Website | Norseman website |
| Year of acquisition | 2007 |
| ASX | NGX |
| Production | |
| Financial year | 2008-09 |
| Ounces of Gold | 80,753 |
| History | |
| Opened | 1940s |
The Norseman Gold Mine is a gold mine located at Norseman, Western Australia.
It is operated by Norseman Gold Plc and is Australia’s longest continuously running gold mining operation. The Norseman area lies at the southern end of the Norseman-Wiluna Greenstone Belt.[1]
Contents |
Gold was first discovered in the region at Dundas, 22 km south of present-day Norseman, followed in august 1894 by a gold discovery near the future town of Norseman itself, by Laurie Sinclair his brother George Sinclair & Jack Alsopp, the deposit was name the Norseman Reward after his horse, Hardy Norseman. The family came to Western Australia in December 1863 from The shetland Isles. [1][2]
In 1935, a new era of mining begun for the town, when Western Mining arrived in the region and invested in its infrastructure.[2]
Operated by Central Norseman Gold Corporation Ltd, a subsidiary of Western Mining, the mine became effectively owned by Croesus Mining NL in February 2002, when Croesus purchased WMC's 50.5% share of the company for A$75 million.[3][4] Croesus Mining went into administration in June 2006,[5][6] after gold production levels at Norseman fell short of hedging commitments.[7]
The mine was operated by Central Norseman Gold until April 2007, when it passed into the ownership of Davos Gold Pty Ltd, now Norseman Gold, who purchased it for a sum in excess of A$60 million[4] The Norseman Gold Mine had been in administration for eleven month at the time of the sale and had been in operation for more than 65 years,[8] producing in excess of 5.5 million ounces of gold in that time.
The mine is currently run as an underground operation only, with two declines being mined, Bullen and Harlequin.[1] A third decline, named OK, will commence production in 2010.[9]
On 5 August 2010, an underground miner at the mine was found dead at a new escape rise.[10][11]
Production of the mine:
| Year | Gold production |
Feed grade |
Cost per ounce (A$/oz) |
| 2000 [12] | 109,612 ounces | 10.84 g/t | |
| 2001 [12] | 128,495 ounces | 14.73 g/t | |
| 2002 [12] | 137,023 ounces | 9.75 g/t | 300 |
| 2006-07 [13] | 71,431 ounces | ||
| 2007-08 [14] | 77,229 ounces | 6.02 g/t | 800 |
| 2008-09 [15] | 80,753 ounces | 6.04 g/t | 715 |
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