Happy Valley Mine (Part 1): ‘Potential to be an excellent mining project’
NI 43-101 report recommends continuing gold production, further drilling campaign
CALGARY, Canada (July 11, 2022)—Zimbabwe’s Happy Valley Mine—already a producing gold mine—“has the potential to be an excellent mining project in the Hope Fountain structural domain,” according to the National Instrument (NI) 43-101 Technical Report completed earlier this year.
The report, dated March 30 and completed by independent Zimbabwean geologist Gayle Hanssen, states the Happy Valley Mine “has the potential to mobilize gold in the Hope Fountain area. From the study conducted to date, it is recommended to follow a path of development and exploration while continuing operations.”
On April 28, 2022, Pambili Natural Resources Corporation (TSX-V: PNN) closed a C$515,000 non-brokered private placement (NBPP), which was oversubscribed, to fund the initial expenditure required to earn a share of future production from the Happy Valley Mine. The proposed use of proceeds of the NBPP includes a C$200,000 capital expansion plan to ramp up current production and C$100,000 to fund a preliminary exploration program.
Located just 15 kilometers from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second-largest city, the underexploited Happy Valley Mine has historically produced more than 11 kilograms of gold since 1956.
With three open shafts on site, the Happy Valley Mine’s infrastructure includes:
two parallel ball mills capable of processing up to 2,600 tonnes of ore a month
a gold processing room
two winches, a pair of three-part conveyor systems, and other equipment.
Up to nine shafts are located on the Happy Valley Mine property, with the primary shafts being worked consisting of the Main shaft, the Pemba shaft and the Zulu shaft. Depth of workings are between 30 and 40 metres.
“The surface exploration work that has been completed has verified historical production from the gold reef present on the claim,” reads the NI 43-101 report. “However, there is clearly the requirement for a drilling campaign to determine the extent and magnitude of the gold mineralization.”
(Stay tuned for Part 2 of this Paydirt series on the potential for HVM gold deposits as deep as 250 meters, and Part 3 on the Hope Fountain geological structure.)