Trigon Metals Inc has announced the successful first mining blast and official restart of mining operations at its Kombat mine open pit in Namibia, ahead of initial projections.
Trigon suspended operations at Kombat last year to reconfigure the mine plan and focus on higher grade and more consistent orebodies drilled in the Kavango pit and Kombat trend mineralisation.
The company is betting on the revised mining plan to dramatically improve operating costs at the mine.
“Trigon is excited to restart mining operations at Kombat and begin generating revenue from the mine. With a strong balance sheet, experienced management team and an excellent asset, we are well positioned for growth in Africa,” said Trigon President and CEO, Jed Richardson.
“I would like to thank our staff, contractors, suppliers, local partners and the Namibian government for their efforts in getting Kombat back into production after our pause in July 2022. This is an important milestone for our Company and the Kombat community. We are excited to begin production and look forward to the continued growth of our operations at Kombat.”
The company anticipates its first concentrate shipments to begin in fiscal Q2, with copper production of 4.4 million pounds anticipated from the open pit by March 31, 2024 (fiscal year end), growing to 6.8 million pounds in its first full year of production.
The next quarter is expected to also mark the beginning of water pumping from underground in anticipation of reopening underground mining in 2024.
The inherited mine infrastructure at Kombat has an estimated value of more than US$150 million, including a mill that can process 1,100 tonnes/day, an 800m shaft with two other vertical shafts, extensive underground workings, a tailings facility, ramp systems, mine buildings and concentrator.
Established in 1962, Kombat Mine was forced to shut down in 2008. Trigon resumed production at Kombat Mine at the close of 2021 following 14 years of closure and suspended operations in August of last year.
