Latest issue of International Mining Project News available (December 19): As Christmas comes, Project News’ stocking is packed full, with some positive and, potentially, meaningful presents. There may be the gloom of uncertainty on the horizon, but even in this time projects are still making headway in terms of investment, resources and appointments.

Northern Dynasty Minerals has received positive results from a resource update on its Pebble deposit at the Pebble Limited Partnership’s project site in southwest Alaska. Based on 2008 drilling, which included 476 drill holes, the deposit has Measured and Indicated resources (based on a 0.30% Cu cutoff) of 5,100 Mt at 0.77% Cu equivalent, containing 48,000 MIb of copper, 57 Moz of gold and 2,900 MIb of Mo, with an additional Inferred resource of 4,000 Mt at 0.55% Cu equivalent. Northern Dynasty Minerals’ President and CEO, Ron Thiessen reasoned that, “by virtually any measure – volumes and grade, continuity of mineralisation, resource confidence, potential for expansion – Pebble must be considered among the most important mineral deposits in the world.”

Mirabela Nickel has received a maiden underground resource for its Santa Rita project in Brazil. An Inferred resource of 55 Mt at 0.82% Ni and 0.24% Cu has been confirmed, with the resource lying immediately below the current open-pit resource. The company is also considering an expansion of the Santa Rita concentrator, with the underground resource, according to the company, sharing metallurgical characteristics to the open-pit reserve. 

There is also news of expected record production for OM Holdings’ Bootu Creek manganese mine in the Northern Territory.  On track to produce 690,000 t for the 2008 calendar year, the company is still feeling the need to revise it marketing strategy for 2009 due to weaker short term manganese demand. Underpinned by strong cash reserves and on-going cash flow from its Que River project, Bass Metals reached an agreement to acquire the Hellyer processing facility and associated infrastructure and mining lease, investing $4 million, plus a royalty from Intec – news that shows there is opportunities in this financially unsure time! Reports from Integra Mining’s Aldiss Randalls gold project, Assmang’s ferrochrome works and Atlas Iron’s Abydos project are also included in this festively full issue.

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