Transcription of The Stock Network Interview with Auric Mining (ASX:AWJ) Managing Director, Mark English
Lel Smits: Auric Mining is a gold mining and exploration business operating in the heart of Western Australia’s gold fields with four highly prospective projects surrounded by numerous significant gold projects that have already been mined or proofed up. Ahead of appearing at Sydney Mining Club, Auric Mining Managing Director Mark English is joining me on the network. Mark, welcome to TSN.
Mark English: Thanks Lel, it’s a pleasure.
Lel Smits: Now, Auric Mining listed on the ASX just four years ago. You’ve already become a gold producer by bringing to life your Jefferies Fund projects through a partnership with BML Ventures. Can you tell us about your business model and also perhaps your expected cash pipeline in upcoming years?
Mark English: Well, yes, there’s two parts to that question. So our business model and our strategy was always to buy assets that we believe we could get into production relatively quickly. So we were looking for assets, gold assets, only gold. We were only focused on gold. Gold assets that are on granted mining leases that had either not been mined or had been mined but not fully mined. So Jefferies Fund, we bought Jefferies Fund off MinCorp Resources.
MinCorp was exiting their assets to concentrate on their nickel mines. And we bought Jefferies Fund with the knowledge that we could get it into production relatively quickly.
Lel Smits: Excellent now, you also plan to move your Munger Gold project to production in the near term. When do you think we can expect to see this project in production? And also, can you talk us through any potential exploration upside?
Mark English: Munger is our key asset. Munger has always been the number one asset for OREC and the number one asset upon which we listed the company.
We have now got our applications before the government departments to get our full mine permits for Munger. We expect to mine Munger in a starter pit starting in Q1 this year. So basically, in the next four to five weeks.
The only thing that will slow that down is not getting our government permits. The starter pit will take us about six months to mine. So it will take us through to September, October this year, assuming that we get our permits on time.
And then we are going to toll treat that parcel of ore with one mill, most probably in Kalgoorlie, in one parcel in September, October this year. So we expect to have sufficient funds from Jefferies Fund to manage the starter pit at Munger internally out of our own cash flow. And then we’ll use that to mine the starter pit to generate the revenue to take us to the next stage.
Lel Smits: Excellent. And of course, you will be appearing soon also at Sydney Mining Club. I look forward to hearing more about the story in person and really keeping up to date with the company’s progress in the year ahead.
Mark English: We’re looking forward to that presentation. It’s in a week or so, a week, 10 days time. And I think it’ll be an exciting opportunity for OREC to expand upon our business case, our business model, what we’re doing and our aspirations.
Ends