Agnew Gold Mine
Encyclopedia
The Agnew Gold Mine is a gold mine
located 3 km (1.9 mi) west of Agnew
, Western Australia
. It is owned by the South Africa
n mining company Gold Fields
. It is one of two mines the company operates in Australia, the other being the St Ives Gold Mine
.
Ore is mined at Agnew in the under ground Waroonga complex and the open pit
Songvang operation.
, discovered the Agnew gold deposit in the early 1980s. A second gold mine in the area, the Lawlers Gold Mine
, is operated by Barrick Gold
.
The mine was purchased by Goldfields from WMC in late 2001. The combined price for the two Australian operations Goldfields purchased, St Ives and Agnew, was US$180 million in cash and $52 million in Gold Fields shares.
Agnew, as of 2009, employees 114 permanent staff and 298 contractors.
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
located 3 km (1.9 mi) west of Agnew
Agnew, Western Australia
Agnew is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia. It is located 982 km north-east of Perth and the closest populated town is Leinster....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. It is owned by the South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n mining company Gold Fields
Gold Fields
Gold Fields Limited is a South African gold mining firm, one of the world’s largest, which is listed on both the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange ....
. It is one of two mines the company operates in Australia, the other being the St Ives Gold Mine
St Ives Gold Mine
The St Ives Gold Mine is a gold mine located 20 km south-east of Kambalda, Western Australia. It is owned by the South African mining company Gold Fields.It is one of two mines the company operates in Australia, the other being the Agnew Gold Mine....
.
Ore is mined at Agnew in the under ground Waroonga complex and the open pit
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
Songvang operation.
History
Western Mining - WMCWMC Resources
WMC Resources Limited was an Australian diversified mining and fertilizer company formerly listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. WMC was an acronym for Western Mining Corporation. It was delisted on 29 June 2005 following a successful takeover by BHP Billiton...
, discovered the Agnew gold deposit in the early 1980s. A second gold mine in the area, the Lawlers Gold Mine
Lawlers Gold Mine
The Lawlers Gold Mine is a gold mine located 23 km south west of Leinster, Western Australia.It is operated by Barrick Gold and, since the beginning of 2008, part of its Yilgarn South operation, which consists of Lawlers, the Darlot-Centenary Gold Mine and the Granny Smith Gold Mine...
, is operated by Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold Corporation is the largest pure gold mining company in the world, with its headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and four regional business units located in Australia, Africa, North America and South America...
.
The mine was purchased by Goldfields from WMC in late 2001. The combined price for the two Australian operations Goldfields purchased, St Ives and Agnew, was US$180 million in cash and $52 million in Gold Fields shares.
Agnew, as of 2009, employees 114 permanent staff and 298 contractors.
Production
Annual production of the mine:| Year | Production | Grade | Cost per ounce |
| 2000 | 209,598 ounces | 6.27 g/t | |
| 2001 | 185,400 ounces | 6.08 g/t | |
| Jan to June 2002 | 66,200 ounces | 3.56 g/t | A$ Australian dollar The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu... 436 |
| 2002-03 | 144,000 ounces | 3.5 g/t | A$437 |
| 2003-04 | 202,000 ounces | 5.3 g/t | A$317 |
| 2004-05 | 212,500 ounces | 5.6 g/t | A$310 |
| 2005-06 | 222,000 ounces | 5.2 g/t | A$355 |
| 2006-07 | 212,000 ounces | 5.0 g/t | A$377 |
| 2007-08 | 204,000 ounces | 4.8 g/t | A$496 |
| 2008-09 | 192,100 ounces | 5.6 g/t | A$541 |
| 2009-10 |
Sources
- The Australian Mines Handbook: 2003-2004 Edition, Louthean Media Pty Ltd, Editor: Ross Louthean
- Western Australian Mineral and Petroleum Statistics Digest 2008 Page 34: Principal Mineral and Petroleum Producers - Gold
External links
- Goldfields website
- Place Names Search Results - Agnew Geoscience AustraliaGeoscience AustraliaGeoscience Australia is an agency of the Australian federal government. It carries out geoscientific research.On a user pays basis it produces geospatial products such as topographic maps and satellite imagery.-History:...
website - Facebook - Agnew Gold Mine - current and former employees
- Gold Fields Ltd. - detailed company history at FundingUniverse