New company news has been sparse at the annual New Zealand branch conference of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) this week, but relatively new entrant Bathurst, from Australia, and the ongoing commitment to work by Glass Earth Gold in Otago and L&M Energy reveal plenty will be under way in 2011.
Several of the almost 300 delegates, who asked not be named, reeled off the names of three private Australian companies "looking very seriously" at coming to the South Island next year for gold, and also talked of a large Chinese company preparing to announce a southern foray in coming weeks. Some of the gold seekers are expected to raise equity, with one considering a listing.
A foray by Australians is not inconceivable, as their resource sector is well into recovery mode and New Zealand offers a tighter range of prospects, with many areas offering well-documented historical data through Crown Minerals.
While the future of Pike River is yet to be determined, depending on the extent of damage to its tunnel and coal asset, Bathurst is preparing to pump about $A57 million into its open-pit hard coking coal tenement, the Denniston plateau, north of Westport next year.
Yesterday, Bathurst managing director Hamish Bohannan said a $A110 million capital-raising was being done for the West Coast venture, with $A18 million for working capital, $A35 million for the acquisition of the field from L&M Group and $57 million for capital expenditure.
Mr Bohannan said contracts for the premium-quality hard coking coal were expected to be announced shortly, possibly for 50% of overall production and 50% later for sale on the global spot market.
Development should be under way in about 15 months, with production beginning in mid-to-late 2012. The escarpment area would be targeted first, where there is an estimated 7.3 million tonnes of coal, with the Deep Creek prospect potentially holding almost 11 million tonnes.
The Buller project was targeting total exploration of 60 to 90 million tonnes, Mr Bohannan said. Pike was targeting 18 million tonnes over 18 years.
• Reporter Simon Hartley is a guest of AusIMM during the conference.
