TRX Gold Reports Robust PEA on Next Buckreef Gold Expansion Pre-tax NPV5% of US$701M at US$2,296/oz Increasing to US$1.2Bn at US$3,000/oz
PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
TRX Gold Reports Robust PEA on Next Buckreef Gold Expansion
Pre-tax NPV5% of US$701M at US$2,296/oz
Increasing to US$1.2Bn at US$3,000/oz
TORONTO, Ontario, April 22, 2025 – TRX Gold Corporation (TSX: TRX) (NYSE American: TRX) (the “Company”
or “TRX Gold”) is pleased to announce positive results of a Preliminary Economic Assessment (the “PEA”) on
the expansion of its Buckreef Gold Project (“Buckreef Gold”) in Tanzania. The PEA evaluated the following
scenario:
(i) an expansion and upgrade of the existing process plant at Buckreef Gold to 3,000 tonnes per day (“tpd”); and
(ii) a transition from open pit mining to underground mining over the next 2-3 years. The PEA will be filed under
the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ within 45 days of this announcement.
Stephen Mullowney, TRX Gold CEO commented: “We have taken what we have learned over the past couple of
years and have now provided a more in-depth roadmap of Buckreef Gold’s potential based on what is currently
known, with a keen focus on maximizing the economics of Buckreef Gold. This PEA yields positive results based
on a relatively straightforward expansion, similar to the expansions we have successfully completed previously.
The PEA and associated project economics can also be further enhanced by additional process plant capacity
and mining rate increases in the future, and the Company will now begin to evaluate these opportunities. The
PEA does not currently contemplate inclusion of any new exploration discoveries at Buckreef Gold. The Anfield
Zone has not been included and only a small portion of Stamford Bridge Zone has been reflected in this PEA.
This is our first insight into Stamford Bridge, and it is still early days there as we continue to execute our
exploration program across the entire Buckreef Gold concession . The future is looking bright , and we are well
on our way towards making Buckreef Gold an exceptional gold producing asset.”
The Key Outcomes of the PEA:
• Base case NPV5% of US$701.0 million pre-tax, or US$442.2 million after tax at consensus forecast case
gold prices (US$2,707/oz year 1, US$2,646/oz year 2, US$2,495/oz year 3, US$2,400/oz year 4,
US$2,245/oz thereafter) and NPV 5% of US$1,180.5 million pre -tax, or US$766.4 million after tax at a n
upside US$3,000/oz gold price;
• The PEA demonstrates the Company’s ability to potentially finance the expansion from internally
generated cash flow without an upfront capital requirement, thus there is no quoted Internal Rate of
Return;
• Over a 17.6 -year period, the total process plant throughput is expected to be 18.1 million tonnes
averaging 2.14 g/t Au with average recovered gold production of approximately 62 ,000 oz Au per
annum. During the first five years of the underground operation, average recovered production is
planned to be over 80,000 oz Au per annum;
• Life of Mine (“LOM”) cash costs average US$1,024/oz Au and all-in sustaining costs (“AISC”) average of
US$1,206/oz Au;
• Growth capital of US$89 million will be deployed over the next four-year period comprised of: (i) US$55
million in capital for the underground expansion; (ii) US$30 million for process improvements , process
plant throughput expansion, and camp upgrades; and (iii) US$3 million for tailings facility upgrades. LOM
growth capital is estimated to be US$175 million and is primarily for underground development. LOM
sustaining capital cost of US$87 million is estimated for site and process plant, and US$97 million for
underground mining;
• The PEA mine plan was developed from Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources of 10.8 million
tonnes (“Mt”) grading 2.57 grams per tonne (“g/t”) gold containing 893,000 ounces of gold and Inferred
Mineral Resources of 9.1 Mt grading 2.47 g/t gold containing 726,000 ounces of gold; and
• With the existing open pit mine operating, the underground expansion plan benefits from the existing
on-site process plant and mine infrastructure in place. The Company anticipates gold production from
the underground expansion could be achieved within 3 years.
The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative
geologically to enable them to be categorized as Mineral Reserves. Therefore, there is no certainty that the PEA
economics will be realized. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves may not have demonstrated
economic viability. The Company engaged P&E Mining Consultants Inc. (“P&E”) to complete an updated Mineral
Resource Estimate for Buckreef Gold (Table 8) which provides the Mineral Resource basis for the PEA , and
expansion of the mine to include underground production, and for the existing process plant to increase capacity
to approximately 3,000 tpd.
Stephen Mullowney, TRX Gold CEO, further states, “The results of the PEA , as summarised in Table 1, show an
extremely robust project capable of producing 1.1 million gold ounces over a 17.6-year life, with low cash costs
of only US$1,024/oz Au and AISC of US$1,206/oz Au. The PEA indicates an upside pre-tax NPV5% of US$1.2 billion
and after-tax NPV5% of US$766 million at US$3,000/oz gold. We will now start work on optimizing results further,
including evaluating an additional process plant expansion and increased mining rates. We believe that will help
to solidify a project which ultimately is capable of producing 100,000+ gold ounces per year for 10+ years, based
on what is currently known and excluding any new additional Mineral Resources. It should be noted that Mineral
Resources were also estimated at a US$1,900 per oz gold price and there is also the potential to add additional
economic material if gold prices remain at current levels.
The growth capital cost for the expansion is estimated at US$89 million over a four -year period, inclusive of a
process plant expansion, process improvements, and tailings facility upgrade s. The Company has already
commenced some preparatory work for this expansion, including capital expenditure for the process plant
upgrades and camp expansion.
In addition, TRX Gold has established a strong O perations team of mining professionals on the ground in
Tanzania, which has successfully managed Buckreef Gold’s three previous expansions on-time and on-budget,
in achieving the current 2,000 tpd throughput capacity. The Company has been further enhancing the skillset of
this team to ensure that the necessary personnel are in place to support the next step in the development of
Buckreef Gold.”
Based on the estimated production schedule, capital costs and operating costs, a cash flow model was prepared
by TRX Gold for the economic analysis of the Buckreef Project. The cash flow model was reviewed and approved
by P&E. All information used in this economic evaluation was derived from work completed by P&E, with support
by TRX Gold.
Project economics were evaluated using a discounted cash flow method that measures the before-tax and after-
tax Net Present Value (“NPV”) of future cash flow streams. The PEA economic model was based on the following
key assumptions in Table 1.
Table 1 – PEA Summary of LOM 25 Key Metrics and Project Economics
Summary of Project Economics Life of Mine
Base Case Gold Price US$
2,707/oz year 1;
2,646/oz year 2;
2,495/oz year 3;
2,400/oz year 4; and 2,245/oz
thereafter
Discount Rate % 5
Mining Parameters
Open Pit - Tonnes of Mineralization Mt 3.5
Open Pit - Avg Grade g/t Au 1.92
Open Pit - Strip Ratio w:o 6.0
Underground - Tonnes of Mineralization Mt 14.4
Underground - Avg Grade g/t Au 2.22
Mine life - Open Pit & Underground Years 17.6
Process Plant Parameters
Recovery % 87
Rate tpd 2,824
Total Tonnage Processed Mt 18.1
Average Annual Production oz/year 61,700
Average Annual Production (first five years of
underground) oz/year 80,100
Capital Expenditures
Initial Capital Expenditures US$M Nil
Growth Capital Expenditure US$M 174.5
Sustaining Capital Expenditure US$M 184.4
Closure Cost US$M 13.4
Operating Costs
Mining Cost - Open Pit US$/t mined 3.78
Mining Cost - Underground US$/t processed 33.09
Processing Cost US$/t processed 12.68
G&A cost US$/t processed 6.50
Cost per Ounce
LOM Cash Cost US$/oz 1,024
LOM All-in Sustaining Cost US$/oz 1,206
Financial Analysis
Pre-tax NPV 5% US$M 701.0
Post-tax NPV 5% US$M 442.2
Financial Analysis
Figure 1 – Annual After-Tax Free Cash Flow (US$ millions), Cash Cost and AISC (US$/oz)
Figure 2 – Annual EBITDA (US$ millions)
Sensitivities
Table 2 – PEA Sensitivity Analysis – Gold Price
Gold Price (US$/oz) Pre-tax NPV 5% (US$M) Post-tax NPV 5% (US$M)
$3,000 1,180.5 766.4
$2,800 1,040.9 672.0
Base Case (avg. $2,296) 701.0 442.2
$2,400 761.6 483.1
$2,200 622.0 388.7
$2,000 482.4 294.2
$1,800 342.8 199.3
Table 3 – PEA Sensitivity Analysis – Operating Costs
Pre-tax NPV 5% (US$M) Post-tax NPV 5% (US$M)
Operation Cost Base Case (avg.
US$2,296)
Upside Case
@ US$3,000
Base Case (avg.
US$2,296)
Upside Case
@ US$3,000
Base case -25% 858.9 1,338.3 552.6 876.9
Base case -10% 764.2 1,243.6 486.4 810.6
Base case 0% 701.0 1,180.5 442.2 766.4
Base case +10% 637.9 1,117.3 398.0 722.2
Base case +25% 543.2 1,022.6 331.6 656.0
Table 4 – PEA Sensitivity Analysis – Growth Capital Costs
Pre-tax NPV (US$M) Post-tax NPV (US$M)
Growth Capital Cost Base Case (avg.
US$2,296)
Upside Case
@ US$3,000
Base Case (avg.
US$2,296)
Upside Case
@ US$3,000
Base case -25% 735.9 1,215.4 468.7 792.9
Base case -10% 715.0 1,194.4 452.8 777.0
Base case 0% 701.0 1,180.5 442.2 766.4
Base case +10% 687.1 1,166.5 431.6 755.8
Base case +25% 666.2 1,145.6 415.6 739.9
Production
Annual production over LOM is expected to average approximately 62,000 ounces with peak production of
94,000 ounces in year 5 (Figure 3). Underground production commences in Year 3.
Figure 3 – Production Profile
Capital Expenditures
The growth capital expenditures are estimated at US$89 million in Years 1 to 4. LOM growth capital expenditures
are estimated at US$175 million and the sustaining capital expenditures are estimated at US$184 million (Tables
5 & 6). A contingency of US$23 million and US$19 million is included in growth and sustaining capital
expenditures, respectively.
Growth and sustaining capital expenditures were estimated based on current costs received from vendors as
well as developed from first principles, while some were estimated based on factored references and experience
from similar operating projects.
Figure 4 – Capital Expenditure Profile (US$ millions)
Table 5 – Growth Capital Expenditures (US$ millions)
Table 6 – Sustaining Capital Expenditures (US$ millions)
Cost Element LOM Total
Site and Process Plant - US$5M per year 87.5
Underground 96.9
Total Sustaining Capital 184.4
Total Cash Costs
The total unit cash costs are estimated at US$1, 024/oz. The AISC is estimated at US$1, 206/oz. Operating cost
estimates were developed using first principles methodology, vendor quotes, and based on historical actual
operating information at Buckreef Gold.
Table 7 – Total Cash Cost and AISC
Cost Element LOM Total (US$M)
Average LOM
(US$/tonne
processed)
Average LOM
(US$/oz)
Mining (Open Pit) 91.7 26.6 (1) 84.5
Mining (Underground) 475.0 33.1 (2) 437.7
Processing 229.2 12.7 211.2
General & Admin. 117.5 6.5 108.3
Royalty & Selling Cost 197.5 10.9 182.0
Total Cash Cost 1,110.8 61.4 1,023.7
Sustaining Capital 184.4 10.2 169.9
Reclamation 13.4 0.7 12.4
Total AISC 1,308.7 72.4 1,206.0
Notes:
(1) Per tonne of ore processed from open pit only.
(2) Per tonne of ore processed from underground only.
Mineral Resource Estimate
An updated Mineral Resource Estimate for Buckreef Gold including the Stamford Bridge domain is presented in
Table 8 and has an effective date of April 15, 2025.
Mineral Resource Estimate Methodology
The Buckreef Gold and Stamford Bridge Mineral Resource models were developed by P&E from 135 wireframes
and one respective wireframe, all created by P&E over respective 2.2 km and 155 m strike lengths . Buckreef
Gold utilized 884 drill holes while Stamford Bridge utilized eight. Wireframes were developed from an open pit
cut-off of 0.40 g/t Au while underground was 1.20 g/t Au. Both Mineral Resource models utilized 1.0 m capped
composites ranging from no capping to 60 g/t Au. Block models were set up with 2. 5 m x 5.0 m x 5.0 m blocks
rotated 30 degrees clockwise and used a bulk density of 2.70 t/m 3. Grade interpolation was done with inverse
distance cubed estimation. Based on variography, Measured Mineral Resources were those blocks classified
within 20 m of three drill holes while Indicated Mineral Resources were classified within 40 m of three drill holes.
All other wireframe constrained grade blocks were classified as Inferred Mineral Resources. Pit-constrained and
out-of-pit Mineral Resources were reported above respective 0.42 g/t and 1.31 g/t Au cut-offs. -------------------
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Table 8 - Mineral Resource Estimate (1-7)
Zone Cut-off Au g/t Tonnes (k) Au g/t Au ozs (k)
MAIN
Measured 0.42/1.31 2,982.8 2.36 226.4
Indicated 0.42/1.31 6,193.9 2.72 542.6
Meas + Ind 0.42/1.31 9,176.7 2.61 769.0
Inferred 0.42/1.31 7,549.3 2.37 576.0
SOUTH
Measured 0.42/1.31 23.6 1.68 1.3
Indicated 0.42/1.31 35.3 1.95 2.2
Meas + Ind 0.42/1.31 58.9 1.84 3.5
Inferred 0.42/1.31 53.8 1.70 2.9
WEST
Measured 0.42/1.31 40.3 3.27 4.3
Indicated 0.42/1.31 204.7 2.52 16.5
Meas + Ind 0.42/1.31 245.0 2.64 20.8
Inferred 0.42/1.31 73.9 2.37 5.6
EASTERN PORPHYRY
Measured 0.42/1.31 2.9 6.97 0.6
Indicated 0.42/1.31 1,306.4 2.35 98.8
Meas + Ind 0.42/1.31 1,309.3 2.36 99.4
Inferred 0.42/1.31 1,198.8 2.44 94.0
STAMFORD BRIDGE
Inferred 1.20 272 5.38 47.0
TOTAL
Measured 0.42/1.31 3,049.6 2.37 232.6
Indicated 0.42/1.31 7,740.3 2.65 660.1
Meas + Ind 0.42/1.31 10,789.9 2.57 892.7
Inferred 0.42/1.20/1.31 9,147.8 2.47 725.5