Latest issue of International Mining Project News available (December 5): There is varied news on commodity prices and the prospects for 2009 and 2010, but the doomsayers are not doing anyone any favours – producing much of the fear out there. There are still many positives to be found and they should be examined closely. This latest issue, the biggest yet at over 40 pages, includes news received within the past two weeks of no less than 20 prefeasibility studies, 18 feasibility studies and 32 projects in development, plus mines coming into production, expansions and more.
Among the biggest news is Osisko Mining has positive results from the feasibility study of its 100% owned Canadian Malartic gold project, located in Malartic, Quebec. This project is expected to produce, during the first five years of operation, an average of 618,000 oz of gold (plus 784,000 oz of silver) at an average operating cost of $313/oz of gold after royalties and silver credits. Surely a great project like this can find funding capital?
After three years of intense consultation with local communities, El Morro SCM has submitted the Environmental Impact Study (EIS) for its El Morro copper project to the Environment Commission (CONAMA) for the Region of Atacama, Chile. Investment costs are estimated at $2.5 billion and the mine would have a useful life of 14 years plus two to three years for the construction phase and five years for the period of mine closure. The deposit would be exploited as an open-pit mine and the ore processed by floatation at the rate of 90,000 t/d to produce 2,200 t/d of copper concentrates.
EMED Mining, after consulting its project advisers AMC Consultants (UK), has refined the restart plans for Proyecto Rio Tinto (PRT). The proposed initial mine life has been extended from 10 to 14 years and the forecast production rate expanded to 37,000 t/y of copper in concentrate from processing 9 Mt/y of ore. Further expansion is expected and will be evaluated following planned drilling programs after production has restarted.
Wet commissioning of the gold production facility at Petaquilla Minerals’ 100% owned Molejon gold deposit in central Panama has begun – production to be 100,000 oz/y gold.
BHP Billiton has now approved its Rapid Growth project 5 (RGP5), which will increase installed capacity across the company’s Western Australia iron ore operations by 50 Mt to 205 Mt/y. The project is expected to deliver first production in the second half of the 2011 calendar year.
Recession – what recession? Ausmelt has boosted the value of work in hand to more than A$50 million by winning a new contract in Bulgaria, with Intertrust Holding BG. This covers the addition of a second Ausmelt furnace as part of the lead smelter modernisation project that Ausmelt announced in November 2007. Ausmelt has also signed a Licensing Agreement with Korea Zinc Co. Ltd for the construction of two new Top Submerged Lance (TSL) technology furnaces for lead smelting.Kinross Gold will acquire a 100% interest in Minera Santa Rosa SCM for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $250 million, plus a royalty. Minera Santa Rosa owns 100% of the Lobo-Marte gold project located in the Maricunga district of northern Chile. Kinross President and CEO Tye W. Burt: “This acquisition adds approximately 5.9 Moz of resources to the front of our development pipeline.”To receive the full 40+ page report, subscriptions to this service can be registered and paid for on-line (SUBSCRIBE TO IM PROJECT NEWS BUTTON), or contact [email protected] for a free trial copy.
