ASX-listed gold producer Wiluna Mining says it will sell its gold concentrate to alternative destinations after suspending a shipment bound for Russia. The move comes in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The decision to offload its concentrate to alternative destinations comes five days after the first shipment had departed to Polymetal’s processing facility in Amursk, Russia.
A second shipment was enroute from Wiluna to the port of Fremantle and had a departure date slated for early March. However, the company has said it will continue to monitor the situation in Ukraine and any sanctions imposed before making further decisions on the destination of its product.
Back in March 2020, Wiluna - under its previous name Blackham - inked offtake deals for the first three years of its production with the multi-billion-dollar heavyweights Polymetal International and Trafigura.
The Russian-based Polymetal was the first to sign up for 70 per cent of Wiluna’s gold concentrates, leaving the remaining 30 per cent for the Singapore-based Trafigura.
Wiluna’s third shipment and the first to Trafigura is planned to depart in mid-March.
The Perth-based and gold-focused Wiluna Mining controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the blue-chip Yilgarn Region in the Northern Goldfields of Western Australia. According to the United States Geological Survey, the Yilgarn Craton is endowed with over 400 million ounces of gold, brandishing it as is one of the globe’s most richly gold-endowed districts.
Notably, Wiluna has a feasibility study slated for release this month. According to the company , the study is expected to show a path to increasing production to over 200 thousand ounces of gold per annum.
In addition to pursuing production goals, Wiluna has not packed away its exploration gear with management saying nine targets are to be drill tested in the next six months.
With the demand for the yellow metal increasing on the back of global tension, Wiluna has proven itself nimble by finding a new home for its product.
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By Matt Birney
