New cobar

The New Cobar Mine is a part of Peak Gold Mine's gold and copper operations near Cobar in New South Wales. Peak Gold being a fully owned subsidiary of Canadian mining company New Gold Inc. The Peak Gold operation consisting of a series of underground mines in the Cobar area that provide feed for the company's central copper and gold processing plant.

The Cobar Gold Field Stretches Over 10 Kilometres
The Peak Gold Mine operations are situated within the Cobar Gold Field, an outstanding belt of gold and copper mines extending over a distance of 10 kilometres from the Tharsis Mine to the Perseverance-Peak Mine, north of the mining town of Cobar.

The Cobar Gold Field has produced more than 200,000 tonnes of copper and three million ounces of gold since mining began in the area in 1870. The gold and copper bearing ore deposits currently being mined by Peak Gold Mines within the Cobar Gold Field include; New Cobar, Chesney, Perseverance, New Occidental and Peak.

The New Cobar Deposit in now Accessed via an Underground Operation
The New Cobar copper and gold deposit is situated about 2.5 kilometres north of the company's New Occidental Gold Mine and like New Occidental has been mined, on and off, on several occasions over the preceding years. The New Cobar deposit is accessed from the Fort Bourke open pit mine that operated from 2000 to 2004 producing one million tonnes of ore. The New Cobar underground mine beginning production in 2004 just six months after the Fort Bourke open pit ceased operations.

Copper Discovery Started the Cobar Mineral Development in 1869
The first mine to work the Cobar Gold Fields was the Great Cobar Mine that became established after copper was discovered, near a waterhole, in 1869. The mines former administration office is now used as a district heritage museum. The town of Cobar grew to become known as ìCopper Cityî and discovery was soon made of other base metals such as antimony, zinc, lead, silver as well as copper and gold. The success of these mining ventures depended a lot on mineral prices rising and falling over the years as well as the lack of water, timber and railway services. As a result the town of Cobar has experienced a population of more than 10,000 people on some occasions and as low as 600 on others.

Spectacular Lookout Oversees New Cobar Operation
The New Cobar underground mine that is accessed from the Fort Bourke Hill open pit is the site of the first gold mine to begin production in the area. It is a spectacular area and quite popular with tourists as there is a lookout constructed where visitors can view the deep pit and entrance to the New Cobar underground operation. The open pit is 150 metres deep, 200 metres wide and 380 metres long. From the look out visitors can see trucks entering and leaving the decline throughout the day and night. The mineral rich Cobar Gold Field can readily be appreciated from the lookout as it is easy to distinguish the straight line of head frames situated in a north south direction above the deposits stretching over a distance of 10 kilometres.
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