Jaguar Zinc/Copper Operations is an established underground zinc, copper, gold and silver mining operation located 65km north of Leonora in the Eastern Goldfields region of Western Australia. It was acquired by Aeris Resources in July 2022. Jaguar Operation has been placed into Care and Maintenance, with operations ceasing in September 2023.
Key Information
Location: | Located 65km north of Leonora in the Eastern Goldfields region of Western Australia |
Province: | Kurnalpi terrane (Yilgarn Craton) |
Resource: | Zinc, Copper, Gold and Silver |
Mining Method: | Underground mining |
History
Jaguar Operations is an established underground zinc, copper, gold and silver mining operation located 65km north of Leonora in the Eastern Goldfields region of Western Australia. It was acquired by Aeris Resources in July 2022. The Jaguar Operations tenement package spans a 410km2 area and hosts multiple favourable stratigraphic horizons along a 50km corridor.
Operations include an underground mine at the Bentley deposit utilising open stoping methods and a 600ktpa processing plant producing copper and zinc concentrates with precious metals by-products. Concentrates are trucked to the Geraldton for export to customers internationally.
Since first production in 2010, Bentley Mine has mined more than 3.9Mt of ore, producing approximately 42.5kt of copper, 318.6kt of zinc, and 13.6Moz of silver (as at August 2021).
Jaguar Operation has been placed into Care and Maintenance, with operations ceasing in September 2023.
Development and Exploration Projects
Aeris acquired Jaguar Zinc/Copper Operations in 2022 and holds a tenement package over the Eastern Goldfields region covering 410km2 hosting multiple favourable stratigraphic horizons along a 50km corridor.
Mining operations at Jaguar’s Bentley deposit began in 2010, utilising open stoping methods and a 600ktpa processing plant to produce copper and zinc concentrate with precious metal by-products. Following processing, concentrates are trucked to Geraldton for export to customers internationally.
As of December 2022, 4.5Mt of ore has been mined at Bentley, producing more than 360kt of zinc, 47kt of copper and 15Moz of silver.
Development and Exploration
Jaguar has built a strong track record of reserve replacement. Current exploration activities are focused on near-term mine life extension opportunities at the existing Bentley Mine. A maiden resource was estimated for the Turbo lens at the Bentley deposit and updated in 2022. This high-grade lens remains open at depth and is highly prospective for further extensions. Aeris is also investigating opportunities to restart operations at the closed Jaguar copper-zinc mine.
Community
Jaguar Zinc/Copper Operations is a remote mining operation located about 60km north of the town of Leonora. Optimising local employment opportunities is important to Aeris and we play a notable role in supporting the region’s economy through contracts with local Leonora businesses and support for the local workforce, with many of our employees and contractors driving into the mine site from the towns of Leonora, Geraldton and Kalgoorlie.
The land on which Jaguar operates is part of the traditional lands of the Wangkathaa language people and is recognised under a registered Native Title claim to the Darlot Native Title Claim Group. Aeris is committed to upholding cultural heritage values and environmental standards in the region through collaboration with traditional owners, landowners, pastoralists, regulators, and local stakeholders. This includes regular participation in the Laverton & Leonora Aviation Community Consultation Group.
You can learn more about Jaguar Zinc/Copper Operations by viewing our fact sheet here.