Alkane Recourses awaiting approval to extend Tomingley gold mine's life to 2032

Alkane Resources is currently awaiting NSW government approval to extend their gold mining operations at Tomingley to the recently defined San Antonio and Roswell deposits immediately south of the existing mine, underneath the Newell Highway.

The project is expected to extend the life of the mine until 2032, and could see about 765,000 ounces of gold as processing ramps up to 14.8 million tonnes of ore per annum.

As part of the extension, Alkane intends to develop three open cut pits and an underground mine. Alkane Resources managing director Nic Earner said the project would also see the increase of gold output from the mine.

"So we currently had 66,000 ounces last financial year, and we expect to lift that to around 100,000 ounces a year," he said.

"There's two reasons for that, we'll slightly increase our processing rate, which was part of the approval, but also some of the ore body that we're looking to extend to the south does have a higher gold grade, so more gold per tonne."

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The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) went on public display in February this year, and after responding to the feedback, the project is now subject to the relevant approvals by the NSW government.

Advice was provided from 14 government agencies, additional information was given from the Siding Springs Observatory, along with six submissions from members of the public - five in support of the project, one opposing it. The project also received feedback from Dubbo Regional, Narromine Shire and Parkes Shire councils, none of which objected to the project.

Since the San Antonio and Roswell deposits are underneath the current Newell Highway, as part of the expansion 8.4 kilometres of the Newell Highway, south of Tomingley will be reconstructed to bypass the development.

Kyalite Road will also be realigned as it currently runs through the proposed open cut and needs to remain outside the 500m blast exclusion zone. It's proposed the road will divert slightly northwest via an overpass over the haul road, to meet the Newell Highway about 770m north of the current intersection.

Mr Earner said these activities are being planned in close consultation with Transport for NSW, as well as Narromine Shire Council, residents and road user groups. He said it would be of a similar standard to the existing road, with a range of safety, flooding and other improvements more than compensating for the minor additional travel distance and time.

"Moving a highway, all of that is closely integrated with transport for NSW, they have rules about how you build and interact with them," Mr Earner explained.

"The nature of that is detailed in EIS. So for a lot of local residents, really one day they'll see stuff happening in the distance, and over a period of weeks there'll be a cut over to a new road. That's it. That's the nature of modern mining, it's sort of invisible in many ways. It does have an impact, but it's set up to minimise the impact on the community and the neighbours."

The cost of the highway diversion, plus plant upgrades and other capital-intensive activities, would be around $87 million.

Mr Earner said the project would result in the continued and expanded employment opportunities, and support the retention of existing residents and attraction of new residents to places not only at Tomingley, but Peak Hill, Narromine and Dubbo.

It is also expected the project would also support local business and promote economic activity in the region.

"The best thing for a region when mining is there, is long term stable employment," Mr Earner said.

Alkane developed and operated the Peak Hill Gold Mine on the outskirts of the town from 1996 to 2005 and has now largely rehabilitated that mine site. The company developed the Tomingley Gold mine in 2013, with the first gold pulled in 2014. Currently the mining operation is approved to continue until December 2025.

In May, Alkane reported their 500,000^th ounce of gold was poured at Tomingley - a significant milestone in the life of the nine-year-old operation, and a proud moment for the company's team.