Ausenco completes the Sepon Gold Project, LAOS.

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27 February, 2003


Project facts:

  • Officially opened 27 February 2003
  • EPCM Contract awarded April 2002
  • Project value US$40.7 million
  • 1.25 Mtpa gold processing facility
  • First gold pour December 2002
  • Completed ahead of schedule
  • Currently producing gold at under US$150 per ounce

In April 2002, Oxiana Resources awarded Ausenco Limited the EPCM contract for the Sepon Gold Project. Owned 80% by Oxiana Resources and 20% by Rio Tinto, Sepon gold processing facility is located in the Savannakhet Province of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

Practical completion of the project was achieved 3 days earlier than scheduled on 28 December 2002.

Ausenco's scope for the Sepon Gold Project included complete engineering, procurement, construction and project management for the 1.25 Mtpa gold processing facility and associated infrastructure.

Project scope included the construction of all processing facilities, infrastructure buildings, 12 megawatt diesel fired power station, river water pumping system, installation of a satellite and wireless communications system, and the upgrade of 42 km of access road to the site (part of the Ho Chi Minh trail) including the installation of 110 culvert, causeway and bridge crossings.

Ausenco sourced equipment and materials globally for the Sepon Gold Project, thereby ensuring the most cost-effective capital cost for the project. Equipment transportation onto site involved worldwide shipments to the Port of Laem Chabang (Bangkok) to Mukdahan on the Thai border, across the Mekong River by barge to Savannakhet (Lao side of border), and then to site.

The Ausenco construction team had to deal with the monsoonal wet season (June- September) which resulted in approximately 8 metres of rainfall onsite and along the access road. During this period, freight of materials and equipment to site was maintained under difficult conditions to ensure that site works progressed in accordance with the fast track schedule. The early completion of the project is testimony to professionalism and application of all involved in the project.

Ausenco Limited, a Brisbane and Perth-based company, provides multidisciplined engineering, procurement, project and construction management services for the mining and minerals processing industry. Projects undertaken to date include a broad range of mineral processing areas, both nationally and internationally.



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Ausenco Limited, provides multi-disciplined engineering, procurement, project and construction management services to the mining, minerals and metal processing industry. The company participates in all phases of a project’s progression, from project scoping studies, process option/technical review assessments, feasibility studies utilised for project financing, through to project design, construction and commissioning. Ausenco’s group of companies also services companies through their operation and maintenance division, supplying key asset management and operational support. These services are applied to projects in a broad range of processing areas, both nationally and internationally.

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