The latest issue of International Mining Project News (almost 50 pages), out today, has reports on 18 Prefeasibility Studies, 25 Feasibility studies, 32 projects in development, nine new mines that have gone into production, nine existing mines that are expanding, seven merger and acquisition announcements and many new appointments to new positions. The reports cover 33 gold projects, 23 copper, 14 coal, 11 iron ore, seven of both silver and zinc, five lithium and uranium projects, four of both rare earths and nickel, three each of cobalt and lead, two each of molybdenum, tungsten and diamonds and one of each of frac sands, titanium, vanadium, manganese, aluminium, potash, platinum, heavy mineral sands, scandium and polymetallic projects. 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.
In Prefeasibility projects, Lincoln Mining has received a positive Prefeasibility Study on the proposed open-pit mining and heap leach operation at its Pine Grove Gold Project located in the Pine Grove Hills approximately 32 km south of Yerington, Nevada. The study was completed by Telesto Nevada. The mine would have a life of six years with production of 26,200-28,200 oz/y over a four year period plus a final year of pad rinsing.
Frontier Rare Earths has signed a definitive agreement with Korea Resources (KORES), the Korean Government-owned mining and natural resource investment company, to form a strategic partnership designed to accelerate the development of Frontier’s Zandkopsdrift rare earth project (Zandkopsdrift) in South Africa. Kores also announced that it intends to form a consortium comprised of a number of leading Korean companies to join the Frontier joint venture, including Samsung Group, Hyundai Motors Group, GS Group, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Group (DSME), and AJU Group. The definitive agreement involves an investment in both Zandkopsdrift and Frontier and an off-take arrangement that could commit up to 31% of future production. Under the terms of the agreement, the KORES Consortium will acquire an initial 10% interest in Zandkopsdrift and with such acquisition secure off-take rights for 10% of rare earth production from Zandkopsdrift.
Feasibility work nearing completion includes Kinross’s Fruta del Norte gold project in Ecuador. Kinross Gold has reached a non-binding agreement in principle with the Government of Ecuador regarding key fiscal and legal parameters for the exploitation of the deposit, which is in Ecuador’s Zamora Chinchipe province.
Projects under development or making progress in construction terms include the Wetar copper mine in Indonesia. Owner Finders Resources has announced that processing plant equipment for Finders’ Wetar copper project has arrived in the Indonesian port of Kupang in West Timor, Indonesia. The plant was shipped from Port Hedland in Western Australia and consists of more than 50 40 ft containers and 2,400 m3 of break bulk. The SX/EW plant was successfully operating at the Whim Creek mine in Western Australia until 2009 and before that in Girilambone in NSW. The Whim Creek SX/EW plant has a nameplate capacity of 18,000 t/y and was purchased by Finders from Straits Resources. Use of the Whim Creek SX/EW plant will provide a significant capital cost saving relative to construction of a new plant. A small component of the plant will now be shipped to Surabaya for further refurbishment, with the bulk of the plant being shipped direct to Wetar in due course.
Marking one of the largest open pit to underground transitions in recent years, initial underground mine production has successfully commenced at Xstrata Copper’s Ernest Henry Mining operation in north-west Queensland, marking the site’s transition from open pit mining, which is now complete, to underground mining and magnetite processing. This is a major milestone in the progression of Xstrata Copper’s A$589 million project to extend its Ernest Henry operations to at least 2024. During the first phase of underground operations, ore will be trucked via a decline at rates of approximately 3 Mt/y producing about 25,000 t of copper and 35,000 oz of gold in concentrate. Following the commissioning of the underground shaft in 2013, production will ramp up to 6 Mt/y producing 50,000 t of copper and 70,000 oz of gold in concentrate. Ernest Henry Mining General Manager, Myles Johnston said the major shaft underground mine and magnetite processing plant will create and sustain jobs and provide ongoing economic benefits for the region and for the state of Queensland: “We’re proud to celebrate the transition from open pit to underground mining and magnetite processing, representing the beginning of a new and extended future for our Ernest Henry operation.” The project creates 330 jobs during the construction phase and 400 full-time jobs from 2013, extending the operations by at least another 12 years.
Antofagasta’s Board of Directors has approved the development of the Antucoya copper project, with an estimated capital cost of $1.3 billion. The Group also has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Marubeni Corp pursuant to which Marubeni will become a 30% partner in the project for consideration totalling $350 million and a commitment to fund its pro rata share of the development costs of the project. Antucoya is a copper oxide deposit located in Chile’s Antofagasta Region approximately 45 km east of the Group’s Michilla mine. The project is expected to produce an average of 80,000 t/y of copper cathodes through a standard heap-leach process and is expected to have a mine life of approximately 20 years.
Moving on to new players in base metals, Glencore International has announced that a subsidiary has entered into an agreement with Exxaro Base Metals and Industrial Holdings to acquire Exxaro’s entire 50.04% shareholding in Rosh Pinah Zinc, a zinc mining business in Namibia. Rosh Pinah operates an underground zinc/lead mine in south-western Namibia, 800 km south of Windhoek. The current economic life of mine is eight and a half years based on zinc concentrate production of 95,000 t/y. Intensive on-mine exploration is underway to add to the total mineral resource base of 8 Mt.
It isn’t every month that a new tungsten mine becomes a reality. Largo Resources has now completed its first commercial shipment of tungsten from its Currais Novos project in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. On December 5, 2011 the company shipped approximately 1,500 metric tonne units (MTU) of tungsten concentrate from Currais Novos to its US based client. Tim Mann, Chief Operating Officer: “We are pleased to announce this first commercial shipment from Currais Novos, which was completed prior to full commissioning of the plant. I congratulate the Currais Novos team in achieving this important milestone.” The process plant continues to ramp up its production capability and currently the ball mill required for full operation of the plant is being commissioned on site. Production at Currais Novos will continue to ramp-up as the ball mill is commissioned and the throughput and recovery levels increase to the proposed target level of approximately four shipments per month.
Full details on all these projects and information on and contacts for many, many more are to be found in the December 16 issue of International Mining Project News….
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