Australia-based Scotgold Resources, the gold exploration and production company focused on Scotland, published results for the year ended June 30, 2020, on Monday.
Scotgold said Phase 1 production at its Cononish Gold and Silver Mine was on course to commence today (Monday.)
It said Phase 2 expansion of production at Cononish, targeting a 100% increase in annual production to 72,000 tonnes of ore and average annual gold equivalent production of 23,500oz, has been brought forward by 11 months to May 2022.
Scotgold Resources’ shares trade on the London AIM market, where the stock has soared about 75% over the past 12 months to give it a stock market value of around £65 million.
Scotgold’s biggest shareholder with about 42% of its stock is chairman Nat le Roux, according to the firm’s website. Non-executive directors William Styslinger and Peter Hetherington own about 11% and 7.5% respectively.
Scotgold CEO Richard Gray said: “To be on the brink of first pour at the Cononish Gold and Silver Mine, despite the unprecedented challenge of navigating COVID-19 and associated lockdowns, is testament to the professionalism and hard work of both the team at Scotgold and all those connected with the project over the course of the year under review and beyond.
“The commencement of Phase 1 production at Cononish, which will become Scotland’s first commercial gold mine, will transform Scotgold into a production as well as a development and exploration company, one with a defined path to future growth.
“We have the funds in place to accelerate the Phase 2 development of the mine, which is targeting average annual gold equivalent production of 23,500oz compared to 9,910oz during Phase 1, and also to embark on a systematic exploration programme across our licence base, which covers an area of ~2,900km2 of the Dalradian Belt.
“As a result, Scotgold is ideally positioned to be at the heart of gold mining in Scotland for many years to come and, with this in mind, I look forward to providing further updates on our progress.”