The BrightStar Gold Mine is a gold project located 35 km south-east of Laverton, Western Australia. Operations at Brightstar are suspended with the processing plant under care and maintenance.
Owned by Stone Resources Australia Limited, it was in production from December 2009 to 2011.BrightStar update A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 23 December 2009, accessed: 11 January 2010New Western Australian gold mine due by Christmas mineweb.com, accessed: 11 January 2010 Stone Resources Australia Limited is owned and controlled to 55.61% by Chinese company Stone Resources Limited, which currently funds the company's activities.
History
Stone Resources Australia, as A1 Minerals, was formed in May 2002 and listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in December 2003.INVEST IN THE FUNDAMENTALS A1 website, accessed: 11 January 2010 A1 Minerals Limited changed its name to Stone Resources Australia Limited on 30 November 2011. The BrightStar gold project was an asset of the company at the time of listing on the ASX.Update on Progress at BrightStar Gold Project A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 19 December 2003, accessed: 11 January 2010
The mine is located within an area subject to the Wongatha native title claim. The Wongatha group is a shareholder of Stone Resources. In exchange for the consent of the Wongatha people to any current or future mining tenements, Stone agreed to protect all aboriginal sites, offer training and employment and issue shares in the value of $220,000 to the Wongatha.A1 reaches agreement with Native title Claimants A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 22 July 2004, accessed: 11 January 2010
Stone expanded BrightStar by acquiring the historical Mikado Gold Mine (28°50'25.71"S 122°38'38.45"E) in July 2005 from Deep Yellow Limited, which had previously mined the deposit in 2004. The deposit had also been mined from 1900 to 1911, when 9,916 ounces of gold had been recovered.A1 Acquires Mikdao Gold Mine A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 18 July 2005, accessed: 11 January 2010MINEDEX website - Brightstar - Mikado search result accessed: 11 January 2010
In July 2008, Stone purchased a second-hand gold processing plant, which it relocated from Kalgoorlie to the Mikado mine site.A1 Secures Gold Processing Plant A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 17 July 2008, accessed: 11 January 2010 In May 2009, Stone signed a $1.7 million contract for the refurbishment of the plant.A1 signs Plant Construction and Refurbishment Contract A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 11 May 2009, accessed: 11 January 2010 In July 2009, the company received the necessary approvals from the state mining regulator for the mine project.Key Treatment Plant and Environmental approvals obtained A1 website, accessed: 30 July 2010
The expanded BrightStar project included a number of proposed and existing open pits. Stone planned to recommence mining the existing Alpha (Brightstar) and Beta (Mikado) pits, producing 30,000 ounces of gold per annum. New pits were proposed for Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta and Theta (in the Corktree Well and King of Creation areas, 30 to 50 km north of Laverton).BrightStar Gold Project A1 website, accessed: 11 January 2010
Mining commenced in May 2010 with 2,700 ounces of gold produced for the second quarter of 2010.Gold Production Begins A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 24 May 2010, accessed: 29 July 2010June 2010 Quarterly Activities Report A1 minerals ASX announcement, published: 28 July 2010, accessed: 29 July 2010
The mine continuously underperformed after start up, staying below the targeted production of 2,500 ounces of gold per month, with a low point of just 702 ounces produced in April 2011. Stone went into a lengthy ASX trading halt in July 2011 during an attempt to secure more funding.
In 2014 additional plant modifications were proposed to improve gold recovery. Mining at BrightStar ceased in September 2011, with remaining ore processed in the following month. By the companies own admission, the 21,726 ounces of gold and 14,586 ounces of silver produced during the mine's operation were a disappointing result in comparison to the expectations for the project. The company's stated reasons for the underperformance of the operation were inaccurate geological data, poor open pit design and poor mill maintenance. The process plant continued to operate until September 2012, treating ore from third parties.
In December 2020, Stone Resources became Brightstar Resources, having previously been A1 Minerals until November 2011.
In May 2021 it was announced that Brightstar Resources planned to spend A$5.5 million on upgrading the Brightstar process plant. The upgrade is part of a plan to recommence mining from three different locations within a 65km radius of the plant.
Production Production figures for the mine:June 2011 Quarterly Activities A1 ASX announcement, published: 29 July 2011, accessed: 5 August 2011 Year Production Grade Cost per ounce 2008–09 inactive 2009–10 2,700 ounces 2010–11 14,287 ounces 2011–12 4,972 ounces 2011–present inactive
References
Bibliography
External links
MINEDEX website: Brightstar / Stone Database of the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety