Lindsay’s grounds also include the Parrot Feathers open pit, which was partially mined for 6153 ounces of the yellow metal until 2013 by KalNorth Gold Mines. After a slump in the gold price, mining operations were abandoned, leaving 75 per cent of the resource still waiting to be dug up.
Better still, the project sits right beside established infrastructure and multiple processing options, clearing a path for rapid development. It’s a perfect set up for a company that has already turned toll treatment into cash at its Jeffreys Find play near Norseman and is gearing up to do it again at Auric’s Munda gold operation near Widgiemooltha.
Two weeks ago, Munda celebrated its first pour as the company’s newest gold development. The starter pit is slated to deliver about 6100 ounces at a forecast all-in sustaining cost of A$2635 per ounce.
Initial modelling on the early development used gold prices that now look like pocket change. At a conservative A$3500 an ounce, forecasts still pointed to more than $5 million in free cashflow. However, with the gold price now bursting through $6000, that modest haul could soon look like the entrée before a much richer main course.
And that main course is the bigger “main pit” sitting directly below. At 3.65 million tonnes of ore running 1.23g/t using a tight 0.5g/t cut-off, the main pit already hosts 145,000 ounces. Loosen that cut-off to 0.2g/t and the resource swells to about 189,000 ounces, signalling some serious upside still on the table.
When consultants Minecomp ran the rule over the project in 2023 using what now looks like a rock-bottom gold price of A$2600, they pencilled in more than $76 million in undiscounted surplus cashflows. In today’s roaring gold market, that number feels more like a baseline than a peak – and the real payday could be yet to come.
With Munda already churning out gold, the clock is ticking towards Auric taking full control of Lindsay’s. Once settlement lands, the company will be firmly behind the wheel of another value-adding asset that could feed its production pipeline for years, giving Auric a second revenue engine in its fast-growing gold strategy.
With gold markets still running hot, Munda already delivering ounces and Lindsay’s lining up as the next cab off the rank, Auric looks to be assembling a robust production line across the Kalgoorlie heartland.
As the legal pieces fall into place and shovels hit the ground, the company could soon be unlocking yet another steady stream of ounces and the long-awaited next chapter at Lindsay’s might finally get its chance to shine.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au
