Restart of Black Angel Mine with production of Zinc, Lead and Silver expected in 2008
26/03/2008
Press Release
A&R announces that it is making considerable progress towards the planned re-opening of the Black Angel mine in Greenland and the board is confident that it will be able to commence production during 2008. A&R has been encouraged by the response it has received in discussions with various potential sources of development capital and other finance.
Mining Licence application at an advanced stage
A&R submitted its Mining Licence application in February to the Greenland Bureau of Mines and Petroleum (“BMP”). The BMP has confirmed that its review of the Bankable Feasibility Study (“BFS”) and of the mining licence application is complete and that its report has been forwarded to the Joint Committee, for its approval. A&R expects the mining licence to be issued in June. (To see BMP's press release on their website, click here)
Bankable Feasibility Study
The BFS, prepared by Wardell Armstrong International, was based entirely on the removal of pillars from the Angel and Cover zones and covers the first 4 years of operations. The project will achieve full production during year 1 and is then forecast to produce 230,000 tonnes of high grade ore in each subsequent year and over the 4 years, to generate earnings, before interest and tax, of $97 million, free cash flow of $26 million and deliver an IRR of 43% at a discount rate of 10%.
Enhanced Management Development Plan - Phase 1
The A&R management team recognises that other available mineable resources (not to proven resource standard) were not included in the BFS. These include the Nunngarut deposit, with an indicated resource of 196,000 tonnes (grading 9% zinc, 3.4% lead and 31grams per tonne of silver) which is currently accessible for mining, and the Deep Ice and other zones with combined indicated resources of 697,000 tonnes which will be accessible via the cable car. Mining the Nunngarut deposit in parallel with the reserves identified in the BFS has enabled A&R to develop an Enhanced Management Development Plan for Phase 1 which:
- accelerates cash flow in the early stages of the project
- improves the overall project economics
- extends the time frame to at least 5 years before the Phase 2 development commences to exploit the remaining indicated and inferred resource base of 2.2 million tonnes.
The BFS mine plan is based on selective mining of Black Angel pillars for the first 18 months, at a target grade of 16% zinc, 6% lead and 25 grams of silver per tonne but subsequent production will need to be upgraded. The BFS assumes the use of dense media separation for ore concentration, but recent optical ore sorting tests have proved highly successful; this technology is now preferred and has been incorporated into the Enhanced Management Development Plan, as it is cheaper in terms of both capital and operating costs and is not water based.
The Enhanced Management Development Plan is capable of generating $45.2 million of operating cash flow each year from year 2 onwards, based on an annual production rate of 230,000 tonnes of high grade ore and applying metal prices of $2,500 per tonne of zinc and $3,000 per tonne of lead.
Status of Equipment
The cable car, needed to access the Black Angel, has been purchased from Garaventa in Switzerland and most parts are currently on site at Maarmorilik. The ground terminal is in the course of construction and work has commenced on the upper terminal. It is intended that the facility will be fully operational before October 2008. Contractors have been identified for most of the site construction work and the principal items of mobile mining equipment are currently being sourced in South Africa.
Recruitment
The mine manager designate is currently in South Africa sourcing equipment and recruiting the initial team of experienced miners. The Company intends to develop training programmes, to enable it progressively to recruit and train Greenlanders.
It is hoped that the senior management team will be strengthened imminently by the appointment of a Director of Mining and the recruitment of a geologist.
Exploration Potential
An independent review of the geological data, by Aurum (Mineral Exploration Consultants), indicates the trending of mineralisation around the Black Angel Mine and supports the view that there are likely to be additional substantial resources, yet to be fully quantified. On commencement of production at Black Angel, it is the intention to implement an active exploration programme to extend the resources available to mine and so extend the life of the mine beyond the minimum of 5 years implicit in the Enhanced Management Development Plan.
Strategy
A&R management believes the development of Phase 1 and access to cash flow will allow it to pursue an aggressive exploration programme and so unlock the significant base metal potential surrounding the Black Angel Mine. This has already been evident in the early exploration successes in the South Lakes Glacier and ARK deposits that have been discovered to date. With this strategy, A&R hopes to be able to confirm the Black Angel as the basis for a new zinc province in Greenland.
Funding
A&R Management has assessed the restart under the Enhanced Management Development Plan and now believes the project requires $39 million of capital expenditure and a further $11 million of mine development costs, giving total development funding of $50 million.
In addition, a peak working capital requirement of circa $33 million may be required as mined ore will have to be stockpiled for 6 months during the winter, when the fjord is frozen over and not accessible to shipping. This figure includes provision for a further 4 months to cover the time taken to ship, process and sell concentrate. Consideration is being given to funding this working capital by a facility linked to a sales off-take agreement.
Sources of funding include a variety of debt and equity and the Company is currently working closely with its brokers, banks and potential off-take partners to create a coordinated funding plan. The Company has access to $17.5m from the Cyrus Facility it obtained in July 2007; this facility is contingent on the BFS being satisfactory to Cyrus, in form and substance, before October 2008.
Other debt funding sources, such as equipment finance, export credit finance, working capital or bridging finance and mezzanine funding from strategic investors and off-takers are being pursued.
A&R will keep the market informed as and when there is material progress to announce in implementing the coordinated financing plan.
CEO Nicholas Hall commented: “We have a very special opportunity to develop a highly profitable zinc/lead mine in Greenland and, thanks to the Enhanced Management Development Plan, we are now making good progress in our discussions with the various stakeholders and potential sources of development funding to meet our overall financing needs. With the support of our broker, Fox Davies, A&R is confident that the funding required will be forthcoming to allow us to develop Black Angel and create a new Zinc province in Greenland.”
- Ends -
Angus & Ross
plc
Robin Andrews (Chairman) +44-1751 430 988
Nick Hall (Chief Executive) +44-7931 709 053
Andrew Zemek
(COO of Angus & Ross, CEO of Black Angel Mining) +44-7850-755 450
Bishopsgate Communicatons
Nick Rome +44-20-7562 3366
Fox-Davies Capital
Oliver Stansfield +44-20-7936 5220
Nick Hail +44-20-7936 5230
Landsbanki Securities(UK) Limited
Fred Walsh and Sebastian Jones +44-20-7426 9000
NB: This release has been approved by the Company's technical staff in accordance with the recent Guidance Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies issued by the London Stock Exchange in respect of AIM companies, which outlines standards of disclosure for mineral projects.
These include Dr Tom Elder, Director, who holds a BSc and Doctorate in Geology from Durham University, is a Fellow and former Member of Council of The Institution of Mining and Metallurgy and a Fellow of The Geological Society.
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