The mine financing package would allow the company to maintain its current schedule for first gold production in Q4 2022.

The Panguna mine was operated by BCL, majority-owned by Rio Tinto, for 17 years from 1972 until 1989, when operations were suspended due to an uprising against the mine and subsequent civil war.

The Bruner gold exploration project is expected to become a low-cost, open pit, heap leach mine operation.

Technology would replace indium, a rare chemical element widely used in smartphones and computers.

The mining fleet is now fully commissioned, and production is expected to quickly ramp up to its design capacity.