European Goldfields moves a step closer to Romanian mine

Exploration & Development

European Goldfields Ltd has received another key approval for its 80%-owned Certej gold-silver project in Romania.

The company expects its Zonal Urbanisation Plan (PUZ) to be granted within a week after final approval was issued by the Regional Department of Environmental Protection in Timisoara.

One 'substantial' permit remains outstanding, namely approval of the project's environmental impact assessment, which management described as “already well advanced”.

The company’s shares were up 5% at £4.01/share on Tuesday morning following the announcement.

European Goldfields' executive chairman and president, Martyn Konig, said: “Our patience has been rewarded with a unique achievement in the development of a gold project in Romania. This is a landmark event. We appreciate that the Romanian authorities have recognised both our competence and our productive collaboration throughout this process.”

Certej is an epithermal gold/silver deposit located in the 'Golden Quadrilateral' area of the Apuseni Mountains of Transylvania in western Romania, 12km from the regional town of Deva.

The deposit contains total reserves of 2.41Moz of gold and 17.3Moz of silver. The €133.4 million (US$98 million) mine is expected to produce 172,000oz/y of gold and 720,000oz of silver in the first three years of a 16-year life. Costs are expected at US$370/oz.

European Goldfields also has assets in Turkey and Greece.