Latest news with #DamianSpring
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Australian mining company Santana Minerals buys Otago land for $25 million
Santana Minerals chief executive Damian Spring. Photo: Supplied An Australian mining company believes it has struck gold on a Central Otago livestock station, buying it for $25 million and promising to employ hundreds of people. Santana Minerals - through its subsidiary Matakanui Gold - has a binding agreement to purchase the 2888 hectare Ardgour beef and sheep station near Tarras to work four historic gold deposit sites. Five years ago. the station delved into horticulture, planting thousands of cherry and apricot trees, but they are on a separate title and won't be affected by the mining. Santana Minerals chief executive Damian Spring said the company is going through the government's Fast Track legislation to get a final sign off and anticipates starting to mine early next year. He said while the legislation aims to accelerate decision-making, it does not override the requirements of the Resource Management Act or other applicable laws. "The collective work undertaken to support the application represents one of the most intensive and comprehensive studies ever conducted on the Dunstan Mountains," Spring said. At the centre of the project is the Rise and Shine (RAS) deposit that Spring claims is the most significant single gold discovery in New Zealand in the past 40 years. Spring said once the station changes hands, the mining will include an open pit mine about 900 metres wide in a circle shape along with underground mining to access deeper extensions of the deposit. He said three smaller pits are also planned. "It has been a great deal of effort to get to this point," Spring said. He estimates the project will employ up to 400 people working 12 hour shifts over the next 14 years. Spring said not all the land is being used for gold mining, and stock will continue to be farmed on parts of the station. "Certainly on the dry land and irrigation pivots - that will continue to be farmed. As part of our due diligence, we will be looking at what farming can continue up in the hill country particularly near our operations," he said. However, Spring adds that sheep tend to shy away from their other mining activities and is mindful it needs to work for both the company and livestock. Spring said when gold mining on Ardgour Station winds down, the land will be reinstated to its original state by planting grasses and native trees along with converting the pit into a lake. Santana Minerals is an Australian company listed on both the New Zealand and Australian stock exchanges. Federated Farmers was approached for a response to the station's diversification but said it doesn't comment about who farmers sell their land to. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Australian mining company buys up 2800ha in South Island
File photo: Marjorie Cook Australian mining company Santana Minerals has bought more than 2800ha of Central Otago land for $25 million in preparation for its Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project. Last week, the company announced it had acquired outright Ardgour Station land near Tarras "which has competing land uses" over part of the project. The company has estimated it could extract gold worth $4.4 billion from an open pit and underground gold mine on Bendigo and Ardgour Stations. Chief executive Damian Spring said in a statement the company was pleased to have completed the "respectful and mutually beneficial" transaction with the station's owners. The agreement included a non-refundable deposit of $2m and Santana Minerals shares worth $5m, to be paid at settlement with cash consideration of $18m. The total acquisition includes four land records of title covering an estimated 2880ha of land including "all irrigable lands, water rights and infrastructure". The freehold ownership of Ardgour Station land covers the proposed location of the project's process plant and most of the infrastructure for development. "This secures our development rights for the majority of the Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project infrastructure and uncomplicates competing land uses when the project proceeds," Mr Spring said. The transaction is subject to Overseas Investment Office approval. - APL
Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Santana buys 2800ha in Central
Australian mining company Santana Minerals has bought more than 2800ha of Central Otago land for $25 million in preparation for its Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project. Last week, the company announced it had acquired outright Ardgour Station land near Tarras "which has competing land uses" over part of the project. The company has estimated it could extract gold worth $4.4 billion from an open pit and underground gold mine on Bendigo and Ardgour Stations. Chief executive Damian Spring said in a statement the company was pleased to have completed the "respectful and mutually beneficial" transaction with the station's owners. The agreement included a non-refundable deposit of $2m and Santana Minerals shares worth $5m, to be paid at settlement with cash consideration of $18m. The total acquisition includes four land records of title covering an estimated 2880ha of land including "all irrigable lands, water rights and infrastructure". The freehold ownership of Ardgour Station land covers the proposed location of the project's process plant and most of the infrastructure for development. "This secures our development rights for the majority of the Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project infrastructure and uncomplicates competing land uses when the project proceeds," Mr Spring said. The transaction is subject to Overseas Investment Office approval. — APL
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Santana Minerals to acquire land for Bendigo-Ophir gold project
Santana Minerals' subsidiary Matakanui Gold has signed a binding agreement to acquire Ardgour Station land integral to the Bendigo-Ophir gold project in New Zealand. The NZ$25m ($15.2m) acquisition is subject to approval from the Overseas Investment Office and includes a non-refundable NZ$2m deposit. The transaction encompasses four land records, spanning 2,880 hectares and includes all irrigable lands, water rights and infrastructure. The strategic move will eliminate a 1% gross production royalty on part of the RAS orebody and associated deposits. The acquisition also secures the location for the project's processing plant and most of its infrastructure. Situated on New Zealand's South Island, the Bendigo-Ophir gold project is an hour's drive east of the international airport in Queenstown. The 251km² project is located within the Central Otago goldfields, 90km to the northwest of the globally renowned Macraes gold mine operated by OceanaGold. This mine is notable for its significant gold yield, with past production and mineral resources collectively exceeding eight million ounces. Santana CEO Damian Spring stated: 'We are pleased to have completed a respectful and mutually beneficial transaction with the owners of the Ardgour Station. This secures our development rights for the majority of the Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project infrastructure and uncomplicates competing land uses when the project proceeds. 'We are also very pleased that the owners have joined themselves at the hip with us in sharing the tremendous benefits and upside the development can have for all its stakeholders by taking part of their consideration in share ownership of the parent company.' A portion of the acquisition cost of NZ$5m will be settled in Santana Minerals shares, priced according to the 10-day volume-weighted average price before the agreement signing. Existing rights under the current access agreement between Ardgour Station landowners and Matakanui Gold will remain if the settlement is unsuccessful or will be superseded upon completion. "Santana Minerals to acquire land for Bendigo-Ophir gold project" was originally created and published by Mining Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Otago Daily Times
13-06-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Fast-track application imminent
Santana Minerals executive director Damian Spring has told a business audience in Cromwell his company is just "a few weeks away" from applying for a fast-tracked resource consent to operate an open pit and underground mine in the hills above the town. More than 100 people attended the Business South event, where Mr Spring said the last of the reports were being finished on what he described as "one of the most intensive and extensive studies ever undertaken on the Dunstan Mountains". "We have spent over $6million on consultants and contractors in order to acquire the studies that we need for that fast track," he said. "This sort of work covers water quality, water quantity, dust, noise, traffic, water ecology, birds, lizards, plants, wetlands, pests, rehabilitation, environmental geochemistry — the list goes on." While the new streamlined consenting process introduced by the coalition government was yet untested, all going to plan, it could give Santana Minerals the go-ahead to mine as early as the end of the year, Mr Spring said. In response to a question from the Otago Daily Times , Mr Spring indicated to the room he was confident Santana Minerals had done what was needed to secure that consent and move the project forward, saying he did not lose any sleep thinking about the alternative. Other questions from the floor revealed apprehension from some in the business community about the impact any mining activity could have on Central Otago's reputation for fine wine and natural vistas, as well as the potential for workforce poaching from the region's in-demand civil construction sector. Hayden Johnston, of Tarras Vineyard, said the mine site was 5km away from his business, which traded off "the beautiful natural environment" around it. "That's where we have a conflict, right? No matter how good you guys are, the mining industry is exploitative." Though Mr Spring was quick to offer the counterview that mining was "extractive" rather than "exploitative", he did not shy away from the reality and the fact it would be a "perception thing" for the local wine and tourism sectors: "It is the nature of mining — we dig up stuff, we change the landform." But he also backed his science. "When we're talking about toxins, the tailings dam, the whole design is about ensuring that whatever residue is left in those tailings stays in those tailings in behind the dam. "We are designing everything in order to understand what the effects are and how to control those effects." Santana Minerals' newest recruit, environment manager Cheryl Low, just four days in the job and fresh from the mines of North Queensland, was one of an arsenal of experts Mr Spring had join him on stage. Ms Low said even in the last decade the industry had changed considerably in its approach. "Mining people would be production, production, production, and the environment was an afterthought. They've now learnt they have to plan for the closing of the mine before they can even start digging." Santana Minerals engagement manager Vicki Blakeborough, charged with finding the 300-odd staff needed at the site, said as many as 900 people had already been in touch. "The interest has just been incredible." That interest had come from people already living in the area who had industry experience or transferable skills as well as from those who called the area home but were working at other mines "around the world", she said. Mr Spring confirmed a construction camp to house 80 people was part of the company's resource application, alongside a caravan park for out-of-town workers with their own mobile homes. He also expected the company to offer transport to and from the mine site from locations within an hour-and-a-half's drive, he said. Business South chief executive Mike Collins urged Santana Minerals to continue having transparent conversations with the community as the mining company moved forward with its plans to prevent an information "vacuum" where misinformation or misunderstanding could spread. "It's all about communicating ... and keeping the dialogue going," he said. With "record-high" gold prices, Mr Spring told the room the latest ballpark revenue figure for the Bendigo site was more than $6.4 billion over nine years. However, Santana Minerals geology manager Alex Nichol said drilling was ongoing at four sites in the northern part of the Rise and Shine deposit with the aim to grow that gold resource further.
