29Metals has awarded the Gossan Valley mining contract to Byrnecut Australia after a competitive tender process for the Golden Grove operation.  

The four-year underground mining contract enables operational and commercial synergies and supports 29Metals’ goal of achieving first ore from Gossan Valley by the end of 2026. 

As the incumbent mining contractor for the Gossan Hill and Scuddles mines at Golden Grove, Byrnecut’s continued involvement will allow for shared equipment and personnel across the Golden Grove mining operations. 

This integration is expected to streamline operations and optimise resource allocation across the site. 

The Gossan Valley project, located around 7km south of the Gossan Hill mine at Golden Grove, was discovered in 2010 and is wholly owned by 29Metals.  

The mine has an initial life of six years, with a planned mining rate of up to 585,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) and ore reserves totalling 1.2 million tonnes (mt). 

Gossan Valley encompasses the Gossan Valley, Conteville and Grassi deposits, as well as Felix, which lies outside the current project envelope.  

Together these deposits host a combined mineral resource of 5.6mt, grading at 1.1% copper, 5.5% zinc, 0.6 grams per tonne (g/t) of gold and 18g/t of silver. 

Once operational, Gossan Valley is expected to strengthen the Golden Grove life-of-mine plan by providing a higher-grade replacement ore source to offset declining production from Scuddles.  

29Metals CEO James Palmer said: “The award of the mining contract is another significant milestone towards achieving first ore from Gossan Valley by end of 2026. As the second-highest grade ore reserve behind Xantho Extended, development of Gossan Valley optimises Golden Grove’s life-of-mine production profile and enhances overall production flexibility as a relatively shallow and independent mining front.  

“After a competitive tender process, we are pleased to be advancing the Gossan Valley project with Byrnecut, who as the incumbent mining contractor at Gossan Hill and Scuddles, enable opportunities for operational and commercial synergies across mining operations at Golden Grove.” 

29Metals is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, and maintains support offices in Perth, Western Australia (WA) and Brisbane, Queensland.