Charters towers

Gold is mined underground at the Charters Towers gold mine. The gold deposit is hosted in extremely hard granodiorite rock that is five times as strong as commercial grade concrete. The gold veins are accessed by two declines and the ore extracted by means of drilling and blasting. The tunnel system is quite complex and requires cutting edge engineering practices in continually being able to locate ongoing deposits. The method used is mechanised long-hole open stoping on sub-levels of 15 metres using trackless diesel haulage. This provides the base for a low cost operation of around $400 an ounce. The gold bearing ore is then taken by truck, a distance of 12 kilometres, to the company's gold extraction plant.

Gold Extraction Plant at Charters Towers Able to Process 340,000 Ounces of Gold a Year

The Charters Towers Gold Extraction Plant, that is situated on the Gregory Highway, is a traditional carbon-in-leach (CIL) facility that is able to process 340,000 tonnes of gold bearing ore annually. It consists of a gravity circuit that recovers coarse gold particles. This then allows high grade ore to be better processed within the plant. Expansion plans, when completed, will allow the plant to recover 320,000 ounces of gold a year.

The Charters Towers Gold Extraction Plant produces gold dore' bars on site. These bars containing around 30 percent silver and 60 percent gold are sent to a gold bullion refiner where the gold and silver is separated.

Charters Towers Gold Mine Re-opened in 2006

Mining at the Charters Towers Gold Mine is primarily operated by Citigold's 80 personnel who operate all plant and equipment. Drilling and exploration is carried out on the company's behalf by contractors. Mine owner, Citigold Corporation Limited, was first listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in 1993. After no gold mining taking place at Charters Towers for a period of 89 years, Citigold re-opened the Warrior Mine four kilometres from the city centre in 2006. Citigold is now operating at two sites, the underground mine and the Gold Extraction Plant. Mine administration is managed at the extraction plant. As the company brings other underground mines online to open up existing parallel reefs all ore produced will be fed into the one existing Gold Extraction Plant.

The goldfield at Charters Towers is now Australia's richest having produced a total of over six and a half million ounces of gold (205 tonnes) over a period of 46 years. The ore at Charters Towers returning 1.25 ounces for every tonne mined. The gold deposit is therefore Australia's largest modern day bonanza with resources of 10 million ounces remaining to be recovered and it is the first time in the history of Charters Towers that the gold within the area is being mined by just the one company.

Tenements Cover 1000 Square Kilometres

The mineral tenure held by Citigold at Charters Towers covers an area of 1000 square kilometres centered around the gold field proper. These tenements consist of mining leases which are used to expand and operate the gold mines, mineral development licenses for extending the mining area when needed and exploration permits. The mining leases give Citigold exclusive mining rights in the area with gold and silver being the principal metals being prospected for. Citigold pay the Queensland State Government five percent of the price obtained for all sales of silver and gold recovered from the Charters Towers operations.