The latest issue of International Mining Project News, out today, has reports on 17 prefeasibility studies, 25 feasibility studies, 34 projects in development, nine new mines that have gone into production, nine existing mines that are expanding, five merger and acquisition announcements and many new appointments to new positions. The reports covers 37 gold projects, 14 copper and iron ore, eight nickel projects, seven coal, six tin projects, five zinc and silver, four projects on uranium, lithium and tungsten, three vanadium and molybdenum projects, two projects on rare earth elements, manganese, lead, cobalt and platinum group metals,one project each on barite, zircon, mineral sands, bismuth, titanium and potash, and one polymetallic project.
The Queensland government has conditionally approved the development of the A$6.4-billion Alpha coal project in the Galilee basin. The project, being developed by Hancock Coal, is a 30 Mt/y open-pit mine and a 495 km railway line from the mine to Abbot Point port, near Bowen.Extorre Gold Mines provides details of a preliminary internal study for the staging of mine development contemplated in PEA-3 for the Cerro Moro gold-silver project announced on April 2, 2012. The study indicates potential mine development CAPEX of approximately $124 million in stage one of a two stage approach while maintaining initial production exceeding 170,000 oz/y gold equivalent in the first year of production.
Going into production: Atlantic has made the first shipment of ferrovanadium from its wholly-owned Windimurra vanadium project in Western Australia. Rambler Metals and Mining has commenced copper concentrate production with ore from its 100% owned Ming copper-gold mine in Newfoundland and Labrador’s Baie Verte Peninsula, Canada. Metanor Resources has delivered its first gold dore bar to the Royal Canadian Mint from its ongoing 5,000 t bulk sample at the Bachelor project. Metanor is continuing its bulk sample and further gold dore bars are to be produced.
Discovery Metals has begun commissioning the concentrator at its 100%-owned Boseto copper project in northwest Botswana, at the same time announcing an early start in the December 2013 quarter to Zeta underground operations. Ore crushing has begun and milling, flotation and production of copper-silver concentrate is expected this month. Boseto is designed to produce 36,000 t/y copper and 1.1 Moz/y gold in concentrate.
Construction is starting at the Dugald River project, one of the world’s largest and highest grade known undeveloped lead-zinc-silver deposits with a resource of 53 Mt at 12.5% Zn, 1.9% Pb and 36 g/t Ag. Dugald River is located in northwest Queensland, approximately 65 km northwest of Cloncurry.
A feasibility study is underway for development of the Ollachea gold mine in Peru, and important local community programs have been agreed. The commitments include a 5% equity participation for the Community of Ollachea, upon the commencement of commercial production. A prefeasibility study completed in 2011, based upon an indicated resource of 1.4 Moz of gold, pointed to an average production rate of 117,000 oz/y.
Minemakers has commenced a process to attract and select suitable parties interested in a joint venture arrangement on Wonarah in Northern Territory Australia. Potential JV partners are likely to be major players in the phosphate value chain from several different countries and the first task will be a bankable feasibility study. Wonarah is one of few major undeveloped rock phosphate deposits in the world and it is ideally located in a politically stable jurisdiction, has significant infrastructure already in place and is well located to access major regional markets.
Mwana Africa’s 52.9% subsidiary, Bindura Nickel Corp (BNC), intends to carry out a rights issue to raise $21 million, proceeds of which will be used to fund the restart of BNC’s Trojan Nickel Mine in Zimbabwe.
Malaysia Smelting Corp (MSC) has agreed to take a 40% stake in Africa Smelting Corp (ASC), which is currently controlled by Mining Mineral Resources (MMR). ASC is building a new 3,500 t/y tin smelter in Lubumbashi in the Katanga province of DR Congo. One electric furnace has already been installed and a second furnace is under construction. The plant is due to start production in November and will produce 98% crude tin ingots which will be sent for final refining at MSC’s Butterworth plant in Malaysia.
This fortnightly project watch is a great way of keeping up to date with your peers – other mining companies, other consultants or other engineering companies. These issues build into a global mine project overview. If you are a supplier – it is full of potential sales leads.