Aurelia Metals has temporarily idled some production at its Dargues gold operation in southern New South Wales due to a significant rain that is causing flooding in the region.

The miner said the suspension is a precaution, as the rain has impacted both the underground mine and surface infrastructure, along with the mine’s tailings storage facility. While the TSF has an emergency spillway, the company has chosen not to add further water to the facility as it has reached its operational storage capacity.

The underground mine is still operating, but on a restricted basis.

Aurelia officials said it cannot determine the timeframe to return to normal operations, as it will depend upon weather conditions. Additionally, it cannot ascertain the full impact to the property at this time.

“We take out environmental responsibility very seriously. We have notified the appropriate regulators about the impact of the rainfall and continue to work closely with them to manage the situation,” MD and CEO Dan Clifford said.

“Rainfall is forecast to diminish over the coming days, which will allow Aurelia to determine and evaluate an appropriate path to resume ore processing operations.”

Aurelia purchased Dargues, located southeast of Canberra, in December 2020 from Diversified Minerals for A$190 million. First gold concentrate was shipped from the conventional bottom-up longhole stoping mine in June 2020.

Source: Aurelia Metals