Canadian junior Newcore Gold has announced a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for its Enchi gold project in Ghana, outlining plans for an open pit and heap leach operation treating 6.6 million tonnes per year with savings strong and low capital intensity.

The initial investment costs are estimated at $ 97 million with a return on investment of approximately two years after the first gold pour.

The PEA calculated an after-tax net present value, at a 5% discount, of $ 212 million and an internal rate of return of 42% at a gold price of $ 1,650 / oz.

The PSE also reflects an updated inferred mineral resource, finite in the pit, of 70.4 million tonnes grading 0.62 g / t containing 1.4 million ounces of gold.

“We believe the project and the economy have tremendous benefits from expanding resources both from shallow and near-surface oxide mineralization, but also from higher grade structures than we begin to define in depth. This PEA includes only 20,195m of drilling from our ongoing 66,000m drilling program, and incorporates only the shallow open pit oxide material defined to date, with the first deeper drilling on the ongoing project to define the growth potential of in-depth resources.

“We are excited to continue to define the multi-million ounce district-wide potential at Enchi and strengthen the underlying value that the updated PEA highlights,” said the President and CEO Luc Alexandre.

The Enchi mine would produce 104,171 oz / a of gold in years two to five and 983,296 oz / a recovered over the mine life of 11 years.