The latest issue of International Mining Project News, out today, has reports on 31 prefeasibility studies, 15 feasibility studies, 26 projects in development, three new mines that have gone into production, eight existing mines that are expanding, seven merger and acquisition announcements and many new appointments to new positions. The report covers 42 gold projects, 17 copper, 10 iron ore projects, eight silver, six zinc, five on molybdenum, four rare earths and coal projects, three on lithium and tungsten, two on lead, nickel, uranium, PGMs, potash and cobalt, and one project each on bismuth, base metals, tin, vanadium, titanium, manganese, graphite and phosphate and one polymetallic project. OceanaGold has pre-commissioning activities are underway at the Didipio project in the Philippines where the grinding mills are installed; the high and low voltage switchrooms are installed; the first six power generating units have been run synchronously with the remaining six expected to be commissioned later this month; the initial lift of the TSF is completed and ready to accept tailings; crushing of material to the emergency stockpile is expected to commence later in October and capital costs are on target.
Bloomberg has reported “Mongolia’s new government will ignore calls for the nation to take a larger share of Rio Tinto’s Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine, focusing instead on attracting overseas investors to the country’s biggest coalfield, the foreign minister said. The four-party ruling coalition of Mongolia, which the World Bank said was the world’s fastest growing economy last year, hopes to name “within months” who will develop part of the 6,000 Mt Tavan Tolgoi coalfield, Luvsanvandan Bold said in an interview in Tokyo on October 2. The project, which has the US, China, Japan, Russia and South Korea interested, is a priority, he said.”
In its largest investment in Mongolia to date, the EBRD aims to raise standards in the country’s mining industry with a $250 million loan for the development of the Tsagaan Suvarga copper mine located in the Dornogobi province, southeast Mongolia. Through the project the Bank is aiming to help develop a sustainable mining sector in Mongolia. The project also has a strong demonstration effect, as it introduces high environmental and social standards in the Mongolian copper industry, as well as supporting the further growth of a domestically grown company.
As construction at the Oyu Tolgoi project is essentially complete and initial production is anticipated in the near term, Turquoise Hill Resources provided investors an update on key elements of the project’s development. The Definitive Integrated Development and Operations Plan (DIDOP) underground feasibility study is ongoing and is now expected to be released in the first half of 2013. The study team is currently evaluating the optimum development plan and updating various sensitivity cases. Capital approvals for underground development will likely be approved in distinct stages.
The Korean Consortium (which owns 51%) has advanced $6.7 million to Minera y Metalúrgica del Boleo (MMB). This additional cash injection has allowed MMB to continue construction of the Boleo project. Baja Mining has a 49% interest in the Boleo copper-cobalt-zinc-manganese project located near Santa Rosalia, Baja California Sur, Mexico. Unanticipated cost overruns at the Boleo project were identified in April 2012. As a result, significant changes have occurred at Baja Mining.
Drilling will commence next month to establish a fresh round of underground nickel reserves at the Mount Windarra mine in Western Australia as its new owners ramp up for a production re-start designed by 2014 to deliver one of the world’s few modern era high grade nickel sulphide mines.
PMI Gold Corp announced a C$100 million equity financing to fund the development of its Obotan gold project in accordance with its definitive feasibility study, for Ghana exploration activities and for general and administrative expenses. The NI 43-101 feasibility study demonstrated a robust and viable project at Obotan with key highlights including a pre-tax NPV of $614 million, an IRR of 35% using a $1,300/oz gold price and 5% discount rate, and Proven and Probable Ore Reserves totalling 34.2 Mt at 2.1g/t Au for 2.43 Moz across four deposits.
IAMGOLD has an updated resource estimate in accordance with NI 43-101 for its recently acquired Côté gold project, located halfway between Timmins and Sudbury in northern Ontario. The mineral resource estimate incorporates assay results from an additional 79 holes (44,856 m) since the February 24, 2012 estimate announced by Trelawney Mining and Exploration. The new Côté gold resource estimate consists of an Indicated Resource of 131 Mt averaging 0.84 g/t gold for 3.56 Moz and an Inferred Resource of 165 Mt averaging 0.88 g/t of gold for 4.66 Moz. The updated resource estimate, based on a cutoff grade of 0.30 g/t gold, represents a 274% increase in Indicated Resources from the previous estimate.
Dragon Mining’s preliminary metallurgical testing has been successfully completed for the exciting Kuusamo gold project in northern Finland. The encouraging results have demonstrated that material from both the Juomasuo and Hangaslampi deposits in Kuusamo North is amenable to conventional comminution, followed by flotation and gravity processes with good gold recovery. Managing Director, Kjel Larsson: “The encouraging laboratory results achieved to date combined with strong results from resource extension drilling have reinforced the excellent potential of Kuusamo.”
Nyota announced a new mineral resource estimate for its Tulu Kapi project, in Ethiopia. This incorporates the results from the in‐fill drill program completed during the summer of 2012 as well as being calculated using a new cutoff grade that reflects the indicative economic parameters to be used for the DFS. New total in‐situ mineral resource estimate (Indicated + Inferred) of 24.90 Mt @ 2.34 g/t Au, comprises an upgrade and increase in the Indicated category of 33% to 1,108,000 oz of gold @ 2.36 g/t; and an inferred resource of 764,000 oz @ 2.30 g/t Au. The indicative economic studies conducted for the feasibility study indicate that the economic cutoff grade for the Tulu Kapi project is likely to be between 0.3 and 0.4 g/t Au. As a result the new resource was estimated using a cutoff of 0.3 g/t.
TNG has a large vanadium-titanium-iron resource at its 100% owned Mount Peake project located close to existing infrastructure in the Northern Territory of Australia. A patented processing flowsheet (TIVAN) provides a significant competitive advantage allowing for high recovery rates of vanadium whilst also achieving high recovery rates for titanium and iron, which can be sold as a byproduct. The company is now well funded to advance the project through the DFS stage and continue exploration within its diverse portfolio.
UraniumSA has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Melbourne-based uranium-extraction specialist Clean TeQ. The companies will collaborate to test the suitability of Clean TeQ’s patented U-HiSALTM process to extract uranium from acidified saline solutions at UraniumSA’s flagship Samphire uranium project south of Whyalla on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula.
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