RE: precious perspectives Aujesse, thanks for your support. Up untill now I've felt a little lonely with my arguments. Many sitting on the sidelines I guess.
I started researching the gold mining industry about 18 months ago when I developed an appetite for the shiny metal's producers, so I'm not an industry veteran but I have learned enough to feel comfortable investing. When I run across something new or unfamilliar, I hit the text books at the reference library or reliable internet sites.
I liked and agreed with your description of the ELLIOT WAVE THEORY as "VOODOO" I think you hit the nail on the head there. I also agreed with your T/A of the American dollar (head and shoulder pattern).
About your question regarding a roaster and process cost. Sorry I have no idea how much that adds. The assessment released March 15 by NRI indicated building a 1 million oz./year mine at a cost of $650 million U.S. would have included the cost for whichever process was indicated in the report (I don't recall).
However Newmont produces at $203 in Nevada, this includes the Carlin Trend, some of which is open pit and some is underground. I couldn't find a breakdown of costs for each operation. Here is their summary of their Nevada Carlin Trend operations and a description of the refractory process.
Nevada
Where:
Newmont's Nevada operations are located between Elko and Winnemucca. In total Newmont operates nine open pit mines and four underground mines and 17 processing facilities in the state. Newmont owns or leases or controls nearly 2 million acres (3,116 square miles) in the state of Nevada. Of that total, 12 percent is on federal land.
When:
Newmont discovered the Carlin Trend in 1961. It began operations there in 1965 under the name Carlin Gold Mining Company. The name was changed to Newmont Gold Company in 1986. The Lone Tree, Twin Creeks, and Mesquite Mines were acquired from Santa Fe Pacific Gold Corporation in 1997. Newmont employs approximately 2,800 people in Nevada.
Processing Methods:
Newmont employs a variety of processing techniques to obtain the maximum ounces of gold available from the full range of ores:
High Grade Oxide Ores
There are three oxide mills at Carlin, two at Twin Creeks and one at Lone Tree. Oxide mills are used for ore that is naturally oxidized. The ore is ground into a fine powder and mixed with water in slurry, which then passes through a cyanide leaching circuit where the gold is separated.
Low Grade Oxide Ores
Heap Leaching: Lower grade oxide ores, uneconomical to mill, are processed using heap leaching. Newmont uses heap leaching at all its Nevada operations.
High Grade Refractory Ores
The refractory ore treatment plant or roaster located at the Carlin operation, treats high-grade refractory ores. Refractory ores are those in which the gold cannot be extracted using normal milling or leaching because the gold is encased in sulfides or carbons. Nearly half of Newmont's Carlin reserves are refractory. As the name implies, the roaster heats the finely ground ore to a high temperature and burns off the carbon and sulfide, oxidizing the ore so that the gold can then be leached from the ore as it would be in an oxide mill.
Sulfide milling is done by means of an autoclave. Newmont has three autoclaves--two at Twin Creeks and another at Lone Tree. Unlike the roaster, which removes both carbons and sulfides, autoclaves are used strictly for removal of sulfides in high-grade ores. Whereas the roaster oxidizes ore solely through heat, the autoclave oxidizes by a combination of heat, oxygen and high pressure.
Low Grade Refractory Ores
Flotation is a pre-treatment process used for low-grade sulfide ores. In flotation, the ore is finely ground, turned into slurry, then placed in a tank known as a flotation cell. Chemicals, known as flotation reagents, are added to the slurry causing the gold-containing sulfides to float in air bubbles to the top of the cell where they can be separated from waste particles that sink to the bottom. The sulfides are removed from the cell and form a concentrate that can then be processed in an autoclave or roaster. The concentration of the sulfides provides for greater recovery of gold and allows them to be treated more economically than prior to flotation.
At Carlin, Newmont uses a patented technology referred to as bio-oxidation to treat low-grade sulfides. Bio-oxidation involves the inoculation of ore with naturally occurring bacteria that oxidize the sulfides that encase the gold. The ore is then processed through an oxide mill.
Production:
In 2000 Newmont's Nevada operations produced 3.0 million ounces of gold at a total cash cost of $203 per ounce.
Reserves:
Reserves in Nevada as of year-end 2000 were 26.2 million ounces.
Barruch