“A low capital method of building a brand new floor portal will present fast entry to the useful resource, permitting us to offset capital prices with early revenues,” Jeff Huffman, chief working officer, stated in a launch. “The undertaking timeline has been derisked by having environmental permits authorized and in-hand, in addition to extra detailed stope planning and sequence optimization.”
The replace comes simply over one yr after its predecessor and nearly six months after Magna inked a toll-milling settlement with Vale (NYSE: VALE). It will ship preliminary manufacturing from Crean Hill to Vale’s close by Clarabelle mill.
Inventory uptick
Magna shares gained 2.6% to C$1.18 apiece on Tuesday morning in Toronto, valuing the corporate at C$201.1 million. Its shares traded in a 52-range of C$0.37 to C$1.35.
The research assumes metallic costs of $8.50 per lb. nickel, $4.00 per lb. copper and $13.00 per lb. cobalt. Additionally factored in are $900 per oz. platinum, $1,000 per oz. palladium and $2,150 per oz. gold.
Pre-production capital may very well be paid again throughout the first yr of business manufacturing, which might be preceded by a 15-month interval of superior exploration, Magna stated. Money prices from that interval may very well be paid again throughout the second yr of business manufacturing.
The typical manufacturing fee is estimated at 2,200 tonnes per day, together with 1,650 tonnes of higher-margin main feed and 550 tonnes per day of decrease grade feed.
Historic shaft makes use of
Preliminary mining is to occur by ramp entry by way of a brand new floor portal and the eventual re-establishment of the historic Quantity Two shaft for personnel entry and hoisting. The location hosts a past-producing mine that operated between 1900 and 2002 below numerous house owners together with Inco and Vale.
Crean Hill’s underground portion hosts 14.5 million indicated tonnes grading 0.96% nickel, 0.84% copper, 0.03% cobalt, 0.88 gram per tonne platinum, 1.02 grams palladium and 0.54 gram gold, in line with a useful resource from 2022. Inferred assets measure 1.1 million tonnes at 0.61% nickel, 0.46% copper, 0.02% cobalt, 0.64 gram platinum, 1.09 grams palladium and 0.21 gram gold.
Its open-pit portion hosts 16.7 indicated tonnes at 0.53% nickel, 0.49% copper, 0.02% cobalt, 0.48 gram platinum, 0.37 gram palladium and 0.25 gram gold. Inferred assets complete 430,000 tonnes at 0.43% nickel, 0.49% copper, 0.02% cobalt, 0.29 gram platinum, 0.14 gram palladium and 0.07 gram gold.
Complete contained metallic is estimated at greater than 500 million lb. nickel, 450 million lb. copper, 650,000 oz. platinum, 675,000 oz. palladium and 385,000 oz. of gold. Magna purchased Crean Hill, previously often known as Denison, in August 2022 for C$16 million when it acquired Lonmin Canada.