JAKARTA: PT Agincourt Resources, operator of the Martabe gold mine in South Tapanuli, North Sumatra, plans to acquire new mining assets and develop new pits across its 130,000-ha contract area to increase production amid rising demand and soaring gold prices.
Agincourt’s vice-president director, Ruli Tanio, told reporters last Thursday that the company had begun looking beyond its current concession for growth and was actively pursuing deals to buy operating assets.
“Business development is never static. There are various acquisitions that we are also trying to do. But any asset we take on must be operated to the same standards we apply here at Martabe,” Ruli said.
“We’re seeing, for example, assets that are already operating. But our assessment shows that dealing with their stakeholders would be challenging, and we may not be able to take that on.”
Agincourt, a subsidiary of local conglomerate Astra International, is currently finalising the US$540mil acquisition of the Doup gold project in East Bolaang Mongondow, North Sulawesi, from PT J Resources Asia Pasifik, with completion expected in December.
It is also scouting for potential assets in Australia as part of plans to diversify its mineral portfolio.
Ruli said the company aimed to grow output by developing prospects outside its existing Martabe concession.
Agincourt targets 100,000 to 150,000 ounces of gold annually from Gambir Kapur, located about 50km from Martabe, “though it will most likely happen only after 2029,” he added.
Other exploration targets include sites in Rantau Panjang, South Angkola and West Angkola, also in North Sumatra province, which are among 14 prospects within the company’s contract of work.
However, it has yet to decide where future ore would be processed, Ruli said, as the company was still weighing whether to build new plants or haul material to its existing Martabe facility, a choice that would shape project viability.
Near-term growth, Ruli said, would still come from the Martabe complex, where Agincourt is preparing to develop the Tor Uluala pit, a roughly 50ha extension holding an estimated 500,000 to 800,000 ounces of gold equivalent.
Developing the pit would require additional supporting infrastructure, lifting Martabe’s overall operational footprint from 650 to about 900ha by 2034, including expanded tailings storage and waste-management facilities.
Agincourt currently operates a processing facility with an annual capacity of seven million tonnes of ore, where it produces around 200,000 ounces of gold and two million ounces of silver. — The Jakarta Post/ANN
