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Merdeka Copper Gold unit targets 120,000 oz of gold output this year
PT Bumi Suksesindo (BSI), a gold-mining arm of PT Merdeka Copper Gold, is riding the wave of record-high global prices for the precious metal.
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The Tujuh Bukit gold mine in Banyuangi, East Java, operated by PT Merdeka Copper Gold subsidiary PT Bumi Suksesindo, is pictured on Oct. 25, 2024 (JP/Divya Karyza)
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T Bumi Suksesindo (BSI), a gold-mining arm of PT Merdeka Copper Gold, is aiming for gold and silver production of 100,000 to 120,000 ounces in 2024.
In June, gold output from BSI’s Tujuh Bukit mine in Banyuangi, East Java, had reached 25,382 oz.
BSI operations general manager Roelly Franza said all-time high gold prices had made unattractive grades become attractive.
“In the past, a good [gold] grade was 0.2. Yes, with the previous gold price of US$1,700 [per ounce]. Now, with the gold price getting better, we can process gold [ores] of [grade] 0.17. That’s the operational impact,” he told reporters in Banyuangi on Friday.
The grade of gold ore is the content of gold in a given amount of rock or sediment.
Roelly said he expected the increasing gold price to extend the life of mines by increasing the profitability of mining even lower-grade ores.
“We’re not drilling a new pit, no. We could drill around [the same pit], because gold prices [have gone up], we could [expand the pit]. We would need to report this [operation] to the government to record the mineral conservation [data],” he said, implying that the company was open to the idea of expanding its gold mine.
