Aureka adds gold processing firepower to Victorian push

In a savvy move, Aureka Limited has added some serious processing firepower to its board, nominating 30-year industry veteran and metallurgist Marcus Binks as it prepares to take control of an operating Victorian gold mine and a strategically important processing mill. The new hire adds a key piece to the larger transformative deal, potentially vaulting the company from explorer to producer.

Under the terms of its dual acquisition, Aureka is set to buy 100 per cent of High Grade Holdings (HGH), the parent company that owns the Fiddlers Creek gold and silver mine, along withHGH’s wholly owned Vanning Resources, the operator of the 42,000-tonne-per-annum Wedderburn gold processing mill. The $8.9 million base consideration comprises just $2.5 million in cash and $6.4 million in shares.

Binks’ candidacy was put forward by HGH as part of the deal, with his appointment expected to become effective upon completion of the acquisition in late October or early November.

With more than three decades of experience designing, commissioning and operating gold, base metal and mineral sands plants, the seasoned metallurgist is a long-term member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and brings a hefty resume to the table. He has held senior roles at major operations, including processing manager at the 4.6-million-ounce Fosterville gold mine in Victoria and the 3.2-million-ounce Young-Davidson gold mine in Canada.

He also managed the construction and commissioning of a 1.5-million-tonne-per-annum gold processing facility for La Mancha Resources in Kalgoorlie. More recently, Binks has spent 14 years consulting to a list of clients that reads like a who’s who of the mining industry, including Agnico Eagle, Novo Resources, Gekko Systems and Strandline Resources.

Notably, the industry veteran is credited with developing the world-first “Heated Leach” process for treating preg-robbing ore - ore that robs gold out of the cyanide solution, thereby wasting metal and adding to costs - and was also instrumental in designing and permitting Victoria’s first in-pit tailings storage facility.

His operational experience is expected to be pivotal as Aureka takes the reins of the Wedderburn mill, a site Binks knows intimately, having helped HGH establish and run the facility. Notably, the acquisition is about more than infrastructure. The Fiddlers Creek underground mine is already in production and generating positive monthly free cash flow.

Aureka managing director James Gurry said: “We welcome Marcus’ nomination to the Board of Directors. His skills and experience will be complementary as we take on the operations of the Wedderburn Mill and move to bring our own gold projects into production – a process Marcus has managed successfully numerous times in his long career as a metallurgist and project manager.”

The fully licensed mill is one of only six gold mills licensed for external tolling in Victoria and currently processes ore from Fiddlers Creek.