Centamin PLC has announced early completion of its waste stripping programme at the Sukari gold mine in Egypt. Since production began in 2009 Sukari has produced over 5.7 Moz of gold, and today has a projected mine life to 2035.

The operation has completed the 120 Mt volume component ahead of the fixed four year contract term ending, which started in January 2021. This has enabled Centamin to further retain contractor Capital Ltd to mine up to 10 Mt of waste until September 2024, with 2 to 3 Mt being incremental to the planned total annual volume at Sukari, equating to a 1-2% increase.

Up to 3 Mt of the volumes allocated to Capital Ltd will be used to divert part of the fleet to accelerate the construction of a new dump leach facility, expected by mid-2025. The dump leach facility will initially add approximately 5,000 oz per annum for four years, with potential for further expansion under evaluation.

Additional work will be allocated as follows: 4 Mt will supplement the owners fleet waste mining capacity ahead of the delivery of five new Caterpillar 785C dump trucks. The remaining 2 to 3 Mt will also be allocated to waste mining to fully utilise the remaining Capital Ltd fleet capacity.

Martin Horgan, CEO, commented: “Capital Ltd has delivered an excellent performance, resulting in early completion of the volume component within the four-year fixed contract term, while also ensuring safety and efficiency throughout the waste mining project. Having successfully completed the 120 Mt of waste stripping ahead of schedule we intend to leverage the Capital Ltd fleet until this September. This additional capacity will support the construction of a new dump leach pad, as well as facilitating the early completion of limited waste stripping scheduled for 2025 ahead of the delivery of the new 785C dump trucks. The net result is expected to be a small increase in total open pit material mined above the planned annual volume for 2024.”