Scotgold Resources targets further mines in Scotland as headcount pushes towards 100 people

Scotgold Resources, the company behind the Cononish gold and silver mine near Tyndrum on the West Highland Way, is looking to ramp up its headcount as it targets further mines in Scotland.

Unveiling full-year results, chairman Peter Hetherington noted that the group held 13 licences, covering 2,900 square kilometres of the Dalradian Belt across the Grampian Mountain range. “In addition to expanding the Cononish resource and increasing the life of mine in the near-term we have an impressive land package for regional exploration in the future,” Hetherington told investors. “The geology points to further exceptionally high-grade deposits, like Cononish, and it is part of our longer-term strategy to explore these areas with the vision to develop additional gold mines in Scotland.”

He said the group currently had 96 employees with “ambitious growth plans” to continue to increase the headcount during the coming year.

“We are investing in our people, to not only help build Scotgold, but also that of the Scottish and UK mining industry,” Hetherington added. “We want to be the employer of choice in the region, helping to drive local and Scottish employment.”

The firm said it had been working with Forth Valley College in Falkirk on apprenticeship schemes where Scotgold Resources currently has placed students in mechanical engineering roles. In addition, in July, the firm launched a partnership with the University of St Andrews for a five-year student bursary programme.

For the year to the end of June, the group posted total revenues of A$17.8 million (£9.8m), up from A$300,000 a year earlier. It posted a loss before taxation of A$10.8m, up from A$5m, as it continued to invest in operations. Commercial production was achieved at the end of June after three consecutive months of positive operating cashflow.

Chief executive Phil Day said the firm had experienced “a year of transformative progress” as it continued to ramp up production at the Cononish gold mine. He told investors: “When developing an underground mine to achieve full production, there are sometimes short-term variations in ounces produced. This is normal and expected in underground mine development as development work continues in parallel with definition drilling to allow long hole retreat stope mining to commence.

“As I write this, 2023 is shaping up to be an exciting year for us in terms of mine development and gold production and I look forward to reporting on progress throughout. As ever, none of this progress would be possible without our talented and committed team here in Tyndrum. We have grown ambitiously, increasing our workforce 156 per cent since I joined in April 2021, to 96 people, of which 51 are from Scotland.”

Scotgold Resources is behind the Cononish gold and silver mine near Tyndrum, which lies in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.

He added: “Whilst we anticipate significant cash generation, especially once full production is achieved during 2023, we are committed to continuing to grow and realise Cononish and Scotgold’s value through exploration. Looking ahead to 2023, I remain hugely excited and look forward to keeping stakeholders updated on our developments as we continue to build an intergenerational mining company for the future.”