The Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines (KCGM), 50 percent owned by Newmont, is on the southeast corner of the town of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in the Australian Outback. Newmont is part of a joint venture with Barrick Gold Corporation; Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines (KCGM) operates the mine.
KCGM is located 372 miles (600 kilometers) east of Perth in the Australian Goldfields. Australia’s largest open pit mining operation, the Mount Charlotte underground mine, is located nearby. KCGM, known as the “Super Pit,” contributed 323,000 equity ounces of gold sales in 2007. Newmont’s share of gold reserves and non-reserve mineralization were 4.6 million ounces and 1.6 million tons, respectively, at the end of 2007.
Work force
KCGM has slightly more than 1,000 employees and contractors, all but a handful of whom are local. KCGM is training Aboriginal workers as more than half of these native peoples are unemployed. Empowering Aboriginal people in remote communities through education, training and job opportunities is fundamental to the future of these communities.
Community
As one of the largest tourist attractions in the region, the Super Pit welcomes thousands of visitors each year. KCGM opened the Super Pit Shop to provide face-to-face consultation between mine staff and the public. The Shop features Super Pit merchandise including "Golden Mile" gold, copies of technical reports and public consultation documents. The mine carefully considers the type of merchandise carried to avoid competition with local retailers. KCGM reinvests all merchandise profits back into local community groups and nonprofits.
Environment
As a member of the Australian Greenhouse Challenge Plus program, KCGM is keeping an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions and implementing emission abatement activities. Over the past several years, KCGM has also undertaken extensive environmental rehabilitation and tree planting to create a green belt between the mine and the town, which is located just a quarter mile away. Today, the mine is working to secure environmental approvals to extend the Super Pit’s current mine life from 2012 to 2017.
