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Business Reporter
BINDURA Nickel Corporation’s updated mining plan for the second phase of Trojan Mine has been certified as realistic and achievable following the completion of a competence report. The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange listed company had its new mining plan, targeting higher grade ore zones in early years of production at Trojan, reviewed by SRK Consulting of United Kingdom.
Any public reporting of exploration results, mineral resources or ore reserves must be signed off by a competent person in accordance with the joint ore reserves committee code.
“The report is independent confirmation that the plan is realistic and achievable and enables BNC to update its ore reserves statement to total reserves of 3 168 metric tonnes,” said BNC.
The updated nickel reserves at Trojan of 3 168 Mt at an average of 1,04 percent for 32, 975 tonnes of nickel, represents a 28 percent increase on previously reported reserves in March of 25,810 tonnes.
Most recently a resource estimate was done by Digital Mining Services, Harare, valid as of 31 March 2013. The current resource estimate extends between Level 31 and Level 49, a vertical extent of some 517m. BNC said the updated business plan is based on the exploitation of the measured, indicated and inferred nickel resources on and above level 49 projected to support mining for the next 10 years.
The data used to derive the latest resource estimate comprises information collected from underground drilling (and limited amount of underground chip sampling) from level 31 to base of the drilling at level 47.
SRK has reviewed the business plan for restart of operations at Trojan and considers the plan to be both realistic and achievable although the plan incorporates a portion of inferred material.
BNC said although this has a higher risk than if the plan did not include inferred material; SRK Consulting considers it to have been appropriately derived from the mineral resource model.
“An off take agreement has been signed with Glencore which gives clarity on the revenue assumptions made going forward. SRK is satisfied that the terms of this have been appropriately reflected in the Bindural Nickel Corporation (updated) business plan,” BNC said.
BNC has developed operating costs from first principles using experience from previous operating history at the mine, processing and administration facilities. SRK considered the operating and capital cost assumptions and deemed them thorough for purposes of a business plan.
The new plan was mooted following the sharp decline in the price of nickel on global commodity markets, which affected the firm’s budgeted revenue inflows amid huge capital needs.
However, the exploitation of higher grade zones known as massives will result in a decrease in per unit costs and significantly reduce the company’s funding requirements in the short-term.
The plan forecast projections commence with production of ore from the mine in July 2013 at a rate of some 68 000t and increases to some 78 000t in August 2013. Over mine life the mining rate then varies between 63 000t per month and 77 000t and averages around 73 000t.
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