St Barbara Limited ('St Barbara' or the 'Company') (ASX: SBM) has previously announced the revised strategic focus for its Atlantic and Simberi development projects and its investment and exploration portfolio.

The Company now provides the following associated capital expenditure, gold production and operating cost guidance for the 2024 financial year (FY24).

At the end of Q1 September FY24, the Company held a cash balance of A$236 million. The previously advised outstanding payables for taxes and transaction related costs have now been paid, along with the finalisation of working capital adjustments related to the transfer of the Leonora assets. As noted previously, the cash balance includes A$47 million of restricted cash for the Touquoy reclamation bond1. Cash balances, including those in restricted accounts for the Touquoy reclamation bonds, are predominantly deposited in Australian and Canadian denominated interest earning accounts. Interest income, net of financing costs, is anticipated to be in the range of A$3 to A$5 million for FY24.

Capital investment in the Simberi growth strategy is anticipated to be between A$10 and A$13 million to undertake a Resource definition drilling campaign, the engineering studies on flow sheet optimisation, process plant design efficiency, mine fleet selection and pit wall angle steepening following receipt of geotechnical conclusions subsequent to earlier studies. Resource definition drilling is the most significant capital outlay and is targeting the conversion of Inferred resources outside of the current Ore Reserve pit designs with the intention to add additional Ore Reserves to the Simberi Expansion Project. A metallurgical testwork programme will also commence once samples are available from the current drilling. Testing will include the potential for ultra-fine grinding of concentrate as an alternative lower capital cost processing option. Capital investment of A$8 million has so far been committed for the Atlantic growth strategy. The full year investment is anticipated to be between A$13 and A$15 million, assuming reasonable progress, to undertake the Pre-feasibility Study for the 15-Mile standalone project, preparation of the revised environmental approval submissions and pre-engagement on 15-Mile, revised Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve for Beaver Dam and drill testing of strike and depth extensions at Cochrane Hill. The Company announced results of the 15-Mile Project Prefeasibility Study on 10 October 20231. An update of the Beaver Dam Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve is underway and the drill testing of extensions of mineralisation at Cochrane Hill will be carried out in Q3 and Q4 so that project surface infrastructure design work can be advanced

Gold Production and Costs

Both Simberi and Touquoy operations are anticipated to be approximately cashflow neutral for FY24. Processing of low grade stockpiles ceased at Touquoy in September and the majority of gold shipments were completed before end of the quarter. Following the identification of sufficient oxide feed at Simberi to last at least until the end of FY26, there is significant commitment in the refurbishment of the plant and upgrading of the mine fleet which will result in increased sustaining capital in FY24 compared to previous years. Although Simberi shipped 15,579 ounces for Q1 September FY24, gold produced was only 10,379 ounces as the operation undertook two shutdowns (with another taking place in October) to carry out works on the processing plant and mine productivity is lower in advance of the arrival of additional contract mining fleet to replace the higher hour owned trucks planned to be decommissioned in the second half of FY24. Production performance from Simberi is dependent on process plant reliability and fleet availability given the minimal capital investment in recent years, however preparations carried out in the first four months are anticipated to significantly improve reliabllty and performance.

Atlantic Closure and transition to Care and Maintenance

Closure costs and subsequent care and maintenance costs at Touquoy are forecast to be between A$14 and A$16 million for FY24, including works to ensure that the Touquoy processing plant is prepared for relocation to 15-Mile when required. Future ongoing costs for subsequent steady state care and maintenance will be determined over the course of the year in light of the anticipated timeline for relocation of the Touquoy processing plant. The substantial majority of rehabilitation costs to be incurred for the Touquoy site will will only be possible after the tailings management facility at Touquouy has had sufficient time to consolidate and allow heavy traffic movement (anticipated to take three to four years). In the meantime several early projects and detailed planning can commence subject to provincial permitting. Rehabilitation costs incurred will then allow reductions to be made to the applicable reclamation bonds relative to that work

Contact:

Tel: +61 3 8660 1959

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