Regis Resources suspends gold mine operations after contractor death

Regis Resources suspends gold mine operations after contractor death

Operations have been suspended at a gold mine in the northern Goldfields after the death of a contractor, according to local reporting. A miner was killed in an accident at a remote gold mine owned by one of Australia's biggest resources companies. Regis Resources late on Friday night said one of the company’s contract team members was fatally injured while carrying out work at the Duketon South operation in the afternoon. Regis Resources Ltd announced the contract worker had sustained fatal injuries at its Duketon South mine, about 780km northeast of Perth, on Friday afternoon.

The site sits roughly 780 kilometres northeast of Perth and approximately 130 kilometres north of Laverton. The affected infrastructure forms a crucial component of Regis Resources, which describes the wider Duketon area as its largest mining operation.

Duketon South is part of the wider Duketon Operations 130km north of Laverton which has been operating since 2012 and is a combination of open-pit and underground mines. The facility features a combination of open-pit and underground mining methods and has maintained active production since 2012. Processing capabilities at the hub include the Garden Well facility, capable of handling five million tonnes per annum, alongside the Rosemont plant with a 2.5Mtpa capacity. Duketon South also has the five million tonnes per annum Garden Well and the 2.5Mtpa Rosemont processing plants. The owning entity, Regis Resources, stands as one of Australia’s largest gold producers, holding a market capitalisation of about $5.2 billion and maintaining a listing on the ASX.

Corporate management moved swiftly to idle all site activities. In a statement authorised by managing director Jim Beyer, the company announced that operations at Duketon were stood down for the time being. Regis said WA Police and WorkSafe were investigating the incident, with the company providing full assistance and co-operation. Company officials emphasized that next of kin had been officially notified following the incident and support was being provided to all those affected by the tragic incident wherever possible, with employee assistance programs having been activated across the organisation to support personnel impacted by the sudden loss.

State regulatory and law enforcement agencies have assumed responsibility for probing the workplace tragedy. In tandem with the official probes, the company has initiated internal support mechanisms.

"The thoughts of everyone at Regis are with the family, friends and colleagues of the deceased."

Regis Resources, Corporate Statement, via PerthNow

Regis described itself as one of Australia's largest gold producers and Duketon is the company's largest mining operation. The mine in the central WA Goldfields region consists of both open pit and underground mines and has been in production since 2012.

What to Watch Next

• Ongoing investigations by WA Police and WorkSafe into the specific causes of the contractor fatality.
• Official updates from corporate management regarding a potential timeline for resuming mining and processing activities at Duketon South.
• Any further announcements from the ASX-listed producer concerning operational guidance or financial impacts resulting from the temporary standstill.