Midtier Africa-focused gold producer Pan African Resources is effectively building a new internally-funded underground gold mine on two levels of the Evander underground gold mine in Mpumalanga, CEO Cobus Loots said on Wednesday when the company reported record production for the 12 months to June 30 and distributed more than R400-million in dividends. A video flighted at the results presentation described Evander as possibly one of the world’s largest unexploited gold orebodies. The addition of 24 level, and now 25 level and 26 level, has given Evander Mines a life-of-mine of 14 years, with increased expected gold production. The 25/26 level project will be funded by internal cash flows assuming a reasonable gold price environment. “The Evander underground has been a real success story for Pan African in recent years and we look forward to ramping up this operation further in the years ahead,” Loots told Mining Weekly in a Zoom interview. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.) The underground team, which also delivered an excellent safety performance, produced almost 50 000 oz at the low all-in sustaining cost of $1 100/oz. The 25 and 26 levels project will require two years of fairly elevated capital to execute and then have the benefit of the expenditure for more than ten years. The current low-cost Evander 8 Shaft operation is focused on the mining of the shaft pillar, from which high-grade ounces are extracted. Pan African’s use of underground support packs allows for extraction of the shaft pillar while providing permanent support for the shaft. This allows mining to continue at the lower 24, 25 and 26 levels. This provides access to more than 500 000 oz of gold using infrastructure that is already in place, which allows the company to reap the benefits of sunk capital spent over a decade of mining. Experience gained and the many upgrades already completed at Evander underground have laid the groundwork for further quick-payback life extensions, which is good news for its investors, the surrounding communities and supply-chain companies dependent on the mine. The 24/25 levels project is not only on track to deliver its first production on schedule in 2023 but is paving the way for the provision of 65 000 oz of gold a year for more than eight years – and significantly extends the life of the operation. “What we're doing at Evander underground is very exciting. Evander underground is certainly not without a checkered past. In 2018, we had to press the reset button and basically put the underground on care and maintenance, and we looked at the options and we then commenced with pillar mining on a shaft pillar at 8 Shaft, and that’s been a fantastic success for Pan African. “It’s safe, it's generated great cash flows, and it also has allowed us the opportunity of relooking at the design for 24 to 26 level, and [to] come up with development and execution plans, so that’s what we’re busy with now,” Loots told Mining Weekly. “Two weeks ago, I visited the new fridge plant on 24 level. The F line is ready to be mined on 24 level, and there are a number of improvements. We've changed the layout to an on-reef development layout for 25/26, which means that there'll be very limited waste. “We’re equipping a ventilation shaft that runs up to 17 level to do hoisting, which means you cut out a massive number of conveyors, so that improves your mine call factor and your ability to produce. “You have a new fridge plant and new infrastructure close to the face and then a number of other improvements also in terms of ore storage etc. This will be a great operation for us in the years to come. It’s a world class reserve that we have there. “To top it all off, we obviously have our first solar plant up and running at Elikhulu. It's been a great success for us and we'll expand that solar footprint to also take care of a lot of the underground energy requirements and that's going to also bring down the cost of production,” said Loots. In...