Goldstone Resources announced on Monday that enhancements to the processing plant at its Homase mine have led to improved operational performance. Following this update, the company's shares more than doubled, rising to 1.95 pence each in London from Friday's close of 0.68 pence.
Goldstone, which focuses on gold production and exploration in Ghana, holds a 90% stake in the Homase gold project. CEO Emma Priestley remarked that the decision to halt production in 2023 to review and redesign the processing plant has yielded positive results. Despite challenges such as the suspension of the company's ordinary shares from trading, the upgraded plant is now achieving the targeted improvements in heap-leaching gold recoveries.
Goldstone reported a widened pretax loss of USD 2.7 million for 2023, up from USD 674,413 in 2022, with revenue dropping to USD 2.2 million from USD 8.9 million. Mining operations at Homase resumed in June 2023, achieving an average mining and stacking rate of 5,400 tonnes of agglomerated ore per month and producing approximately 1,257 ounces of gold that year.
As of mid-2024, Goldstone has produced 1,350 troy ounces of gold, with the most recent gold pour on June 18. In 2022, the company produced and sold 5,155 troy ounces of gold from Homase. Over the past six months, Goldstone has seen a 68% increase in gold recovery and is on track to increase production, aiming to stack and agglomerate 50,000 tonnes of ore, with a target of producing 1,000 ounces of gold per month within the next six months.
The improvements to the plant include the acquisition of vibrating screens, enhanced cement feed, and the introduction of a radial stacker. The commissioning of an on-site laboratory allows for continuous test work, further aiding operational efficiency.
Exploration activities continue to show potential for significantly expanding Homase's current resource estimate of 602,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 1.77 grams per tonne.
