Ireland’s biggest gold find is still at the end of the rainbow
Richard Conroy still has hopes for Clontibret
THE company behind the Monaghan gold strike last year — which made headlines all around the world when it was described as the biggest goldmine ever found in Ireland or Britain — is still confident it will get financing for the mine, despite the credit crisis.
Exactly a year ago, AIM-listed exploration company Conroy Diamonds and Gold discovered up to one million ounces of gold — potentially worth as much as €600m at the time — in the area around Clontibret.
Company chairman, Professor Richard Conroy does not believe the credit crunch will delay the gold mine.
“We’ll get the financing for the mine,” said Conroy this weekend. “The higher the gold price is, the better for us. One of the reasons the price of gold is up is the general world situation — demand for gold is greater than supply.”
One year after the initial discovery, feasibility studies still have not yet begun on the Clontibret site.
“We are at the scoping stage where we are deciding what feasibility studies should be done,” said Conroy. “We are doing follow-up studies on the mine and that will take some time. We have to go through these studies to see how the project will be approached.”
Conroy warned that financial issues could still scupper his plans. “Certainly, it may not happen. Before a mine goes ahead, you need to make sure it’s feasible and that it makes financial sense.”
“If the various feasibility studies go ahead, there would be a strong argument to bring in a joint venture partner,” said Conroy.
Earlier this year, the company indicated that Clontibret could become “an economically viable mining project”.
“These studies are at a very early stage, however, and must be treated with caution.”
The company’s share price soared almost 30 per cent on the day it announced it had discovered the Clontibret goldmine.
Despite the gold find having a potential value of over €600m before extraction costs, AIM-listed Conroy Diamonds and Gold is still only worth about €4m, based on market capitalisation.
Last month, the firm confirmed that it had found gold at Clay Lake, Co Armagh, 7km north-east of Clontibret. This came only a few weeks after it had found ‘extensive’ zinc traces south of Clay Lake.
