Mining Breaks

Canadian junior Luminex has attracted its third world-class venture partner, agreeing terms with BHP for an earn-in and JV on its Tarqui copper, gold and silver mining concessions in Ecuador.
The JV, to be finalised within 3 months, will see BHP pay $US7M cash and spend $75M to earn up to 70% interest in the Tarqui 1 & 2 projects in Morona Santiago province.
Luminex also has exploration JV agreements with Anglo American and First Quantum as well as its own 100%-owned projects.

West African miner Endeavour expects to declare commercial production early in the June qtr after reaching the first gold pour 4 months ahead of schedule and under budget at its Ity carbon in leach project in Côte d’Ivoire.
A rapid ramp-up has the plant running at 4Mtpa nameplate capacity, with a $US10-15M de-bottlenecking and optimisation program underway to increase it to 5Mtpa.
Ity is expected to produce 160,000-200,000oz in 2019 at AISC of $US525-590/oz, with potential to grow to about 300,000ozpa.

Despite record copper production up 3% to 725,300t and expecting another record in 2019, Chilean mining major Antofagasta’s Dec 2018 year (FY/CY18) after tax profit has fallen to $US880.3M from 2017’s $1.2B profit.
EBITDA plunged 14% to $2.2B on revenue flat at $4.73B from $4.75B, cutting operating cash flow 25% to $1.9B.

Reviewing decade-old drilling data alongside modern due diligence work have enabled developer Aguia to deliver a maiden inferred resource of 10.8Mt @ 0.56% for 132.5Mb copper and 2.56g/t for 891,000oz silver at its recently acquired Andrade deposit in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
The JORC and CIM-compliant resource includes 10.1Mt suitable for openpit and 675,000t for underground mining.
Technical director Dr Fernando Tallarico says the resource is a great foundation for further exploration that Aguia expects to expand the estimate.

Mineral Resources (MRL) has lifted stake in the Mt Marion Lithium Project in Western Australia’s Goldfields from 43.1% to 50% via a $A52M acquisition from Neometals.
Late last year, MRL and partner Ganfeng Lithium executed a sale agreement with Neometals, for the pair to jointly and equally acquire Neometals’ 13.8% of Mt Marion for an aggregate $103.8M.

West Australian explorer Fenix has begun preliminary openpit planning and geotechnical work after upgrading total mineral resources to 9.2Mt @ 64.1% Fe, 3.36% SiO2, 2.66% Al2O3 and 0.045% P at its flagship Iron Ridge project in the MidWest region.
The estimate, at 58% Fe cutoff, includes a maiden indicated 6.6Mt @ 64.5 Fe, 3.14% SiO2, 2.51% Al2O3 and 0.042% P at the greenfield site 600km NE of Perth.
Exec director Rob Brierley says the grades may enable Fenix to bring Iron Ridge into production inexpensively and quickly.
Fenix has begun preparing a mining proposal and is commencing offtake discussions. Results of metallurgical testwork are due in April.

Gold miner Mincor Resources has flagged a fast tracked return to nickel production from its Kambalda, Western Australia, operations with an initial deal to process up to 600,000tpa of nickel sulphide ore at BHP Billiton Nickel West‘s Kambalda Nickel Concentrator.
Key commercial parameters include a 5-year contract starting from 1st ore delivery and concluding on the 5th anniversary or Dec 31 2025, with Mincor able to present a minimum 200,000tpa to a maximum 600,000tpa of nickel ore for processing. Processing charges, payable rates and ranges remain confidential, but with processing charges benchmarked and consistent with other nickel concentrators in WA.

Stronger thermal coal prices and increased production from the Bengalla mine have helped Australian miner New Hope lift profit after tax for the half-year to end-Jan (H1FY19) to $A159.8M (H1FY18: $120.3M). Consolidated attributable profit after non-regular items was $120.2M ($115.6M).
Revenue rose to $616.7M ($509.3M).
New Hope expects its transition to active management after increasing to 80% ownership of the Bengalla operations in NSW to unlock synergies and efficiencies over the coming year.

UK battery metals specialist Strategic Minerals will take full ownership of the Redmoor tin-tungsten project in Cornwall after reaching agreement to buy the 50% shareholding of New Age Exploration for up to £2.66M in cash and royalties.
SML says having 100% control will enable it to set development timing at Redmoor, where it recently increased inferred resources to 137,000t SnEq (11.7Mt @ 1.17%).
For Australian-based NAE, which also received $A2.1M when SML bought its original 50% JV interest in 2016, the new sale gives it a strong funding base for other projects in the UK and NZ while significantly reducing costs.

Kalium Lakes is on schedule for production from Australia’s first sulphate of potash project in 2020 after agreeing non-binding terms with German international project and export financier KfW IPEX-Bank on $A102M senior project funding.
KLL says the 10-year facility carries more attractive terms than traditional project financing. Its application for German export credit guarantees on significant parts of the funding is progressing.
The deal is additional to KLL’s $74M debt funding package with the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility for the Beyondie project at Newman in WA.

Construction partner Çiftay İnsaat Tahhüt ve Ticaret will also become a stakeholder under a deal to assist Chaarat Gold’s funding of the Tulkubash and Kyzyltash gold projects in the Kyrgyz Republic.
Under a binding term sheet, Turkish mining and mine construction contractor Çiftay will progressively invest $US31.5M for a 12.5% equity stake in the projects.
Chaarat aims to finalise debt funding for the remainder of the $120-150M capital expenditure needed for the Tulkubash project by end-Sept.
Construction is continuing at Tulkubash with first gold production on schedule for 2021.

Australian-based Infinity Lithium considers it is better positioned to attract strategic investment in its San Jose lithium-tin project in Spain’s Extremadura region after lifting its stake in the project from 50% to 75%.
Local partner Valoriza Mineria will hold 25% interest plus €1M reimbursement for expenditure to mid-2020 while remaining preferred contractor.
CEO-MD Ryan Parkin says the change supports its commercial discussions with key industry participants in one of the world’s largest EV markets.

Nearly 3 years after Thailand’s military junta forced it off its Chatree gold mine, Australian-based Kingsgate has won an $A82M payout from its insurers.
The settlement of Kingsgate’s $US200M political risk policy claim comprises $US55M cash plus up to $3.5M for costs of its arbitration action against the Thai government.
Kingsgate and the insurers will share future proceeds if the arbitration case citing the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement succeeds.
Exec chairman Ross Smyth-Kirk says Kingsgate can pay out its corporate debt facility and fund work on other projects while pursuing the arbitration case alongside its insurers without requiring litigation funding.

The costs of developing and testing of the pilot plant at its 100%-owned Browns Range heavy rare earth project in Western Australia have driven Northern Minerals to a $A17.8M NLAT for the Dec half-year (H1FY19), out from its $9.6M loss a year earlier.
The deeper loss came despite increased R&D tax rebates and government grants lifted total income to $8.9M (H1FY18: $3.6M).
The pilot plant costs also lowered cash reserves at end-Dec to $1M ($10.4M).
Northern continues to increase pilot plant output since making its first 2,578kg rare earth carbonate shipments to customers in China on Dec 27.

Venturex is funded to progress long lead items, final designs, project finance and permitting for its 100%-owned Sulphur Springs copper-zinc project in Western Australia after receiving firm commitments for $A3.65M via a placement of 16.1M shares at 22cps.
MD AJ Saverimutto says strong support from new institutional and sophisticated investors enables Venturex to maintain high momentum with the Sulphur Springs implementation plan while also resuming exploration.
Major shareholder Northern Star Resources has increased its support, opting to lift its shareholding to 19.88% by converting the remaining $1M of a $2M unsecured loan into shares.

Australian miner Wollongong Coal faces a potential shutdown of several weeks at its Wongawilli colliery in southern NSW after being ordered to cease all mining activities by state mine inspectors.
WLC says the prohibition notice was issued after health and safety officers identified areas of concern including strata roof supports and risk associated with the conveyor systems in underground inspections last week.
Wongawilli will stay closed until risk assessments are completed and approved control measures put in place.
Equipment issues were blamed for the 53-year-old coking coal mine’s Dec qtr production slumping to 86,648t, from 114,334t previously.
The Indian-backed miner also reported 13 “incidents” in the mine during the three months.

Allegiance Coal aims to gain permits to mine over the next 18 months to bring its Tenas project in the NW of British Columbia, Canada into production after delivering excellent results on a DFS outlining production of 750,000tpa saleable metallurgical coal over 22 years.
For Australian-based Allegiance and partner Itochu Corporation, the DFS estimates $US54.3M start-up capital expenditure and very low cash costs of $49.70/t FOB.
It calculates average annual revenue of $A121.3M and EBITDA of $637M, for pre-tax NPV of $407.3M at 8% discount, 56.9% IRR and 2.5 years capital payback.

West Australian company BCI Minerals has named Perth-based GR Engineering to conduct the DFS and undertake design and supervision of early site works and infrastructure for its 100%-owned Mardie salt and potash project on WA’s Pilbara coast.
MD Alwyn Vorster says the DFS will position BCI to reach a final investment decision by the Jan 2020 qtr.
The DFS is weighing a 4Mtpa salt and 100,000tpa sulphate of potash project. The estimated $25M cost will be funded from BCI’s $36M cash and royalties it earns as tenement holder of the Iron Valley iron ore mine from operator Mineral Resources.

Venus Metals has confirmed a “world-scale” vanadium oxide open pit resource at its 90%-owned Youanmi project in Western Australia’s Mid-West containing 458,900t (1Blbs) V2O5 (vanadium pentoxide) within 134.7Mt grading 0.34%.
The company says the large measured 86Mt resource containing 285,400t V205 enables it to confidently proceed with metallurgical testwork and scoping studies to rapidly advance the project. Current market price for V2O5 flake in China is $A24/lb.

Aussie heavy rare earths producer Northern Minerals is looking to raise $A20M via multiple subscription agreements for the placement of 400M shares at $0.05 per share and is considering a further entitlement offer on a 1-for-15 basis at the same price.
The raising is primarily to ramp up exploration at the high-grade Dazzler and Iceman prospects at the company’s 100%-owned Browns Range Heavy Rare Earth Project in N Western Australia, which shipped its 1st 2,578kg of heavy rare earth carbonate in late Dec 2018.
The raising will be in 3 tranches –$10M by Mar 31 2019, $5M by Apr 30 2019 and $5M by May 31 2019, the last 2 subject to shareholder approval expected in late April.
Dazzler already has resources grading more than 3x the average for Browns Range, consisting of 144,000t at 2.23% TREO for 3.2Mkg TREO using a 0.15% cut, less than 15km from the Browns Range pilot plant.