Transcription of The Stock Network Interview with Kaiser Reef (ASX:KAU) Executive Director, Jonathan Downes
Lel Smits: Kaiser Reef is an Australian gold mining company operating the high-grade A1 mine in Victoria, exploring historic gold fields within the Lachlan Fold Belt in New South Wales and Victoria, and has recently inked a deal to buy the historic Kenty gold mine and associated Tasmanian exploration tenements from Catalyst Measures for around $31.6 million. Ahead of appearing at Sydney Mining Club, Kaiser Reef Executive Director Jonathan Downes joins me at the Stock Network. Jonathan, welcome to TSN.
Jonathan Downes: Thank you very much, Lel. Good to be here.
Lel Smits: Now, your recent acquisition positions Kaiser Reef as a multi-asset gold producer with an immediate annual production exceeding 30,000 ounces and a pathway to 50,000 ounces per annum. Now, what made you seek out this deal and why do you think it’s a game changer for the company?
Jonathan Downes: Well, that’s a great question. Kaiser has been in correspondence with many gold producers on the eastern states. We’re an eastern states gold producer and have been for a few years.
But we’ve been looking to increase our scale of production, which is important for relevance on the ASX. And the acquisition of the Kenty mine fits our, it has a lot of synergies with what we’re doing already, but it increases our production rate. But most importantly, it’s a good business decision.
We’re buying it on a one-times earning basis. It’s got a five-year mine life and at the current gold price, it’s proving to be a very profitable operation. So it bolts on, but it fits well with our pipeline of assets with the A1 mine, for example, which we’re ramping up. So it’s a fantastic fit.
Lel Smits: Excellent. Now, as you mentioned the A1 gold mine in Victoria, you own 100% of the interest in all of your assets, including the A1 gold mine. What are the upcoming catalysts that we can expect from A1 and also perhaps exploration tenements in New South Wales?
Jonathan Downes: The A1 mine is a very interesting mine. It’s probably Australia’s longest running gold mine. It’s a very rich, very high-grade mine.
But for the past 40 years, it’s been producing from remnant or leftovers from what historical miners have produced from. And following a very large investment on our part of over $25M, we’ve now opened up the bottom of that mine where it continues. And we’ve got a drill rig going there.
We’ve increased the access to it with a new decline, power, ventilation, and all those things that support it. And we’re now down there preparing to start extracting ore. So it’s the first time in 40 years anyone’s been at the bottom of this very rich mine with all the supporting infrastructure there to see it, I guess, hit its straps.
Lel Smits: Well, Jonathan, thank you so much for the update to Kaiser Reef and look forward to listening to your presentation at Sydney Mining Club this week. Fantastic.
Jonathan Downes: Thank you very much, Lel.
Ends