VANCOUVER, Sept. 25, 2017 /CNW/ - Taseko Mines Limited (TSX:
TKO; NYSE American: TGB) ("Taseko" or the "Company") announces that
the Environmental Appeals Board (EAB) of the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has issued an order denying any further
review of the Underground Injection Control (UIC) Permit granted in
2016 for Taseko's Florence Copper Project. In the September 22, 2017 decision, the EAB found that
the petitioners failed to demonstrate any errors were made in
issuing the federal permit.
Coinciding with this permitting decision, Taseko's Board of
Directors has given management approval to move forward with the
construction of a Production Test Facility (PTF). Estimated
remaining costs to construct the PTF are US$25 million.
"We are very pleased with the Environmental Appeals Board
decision, which is another significant milestone for our Florence
Copper Project. We now have all necessary state and federal permits
in place to build and operate the PTF," commented Russell Hallbauer, President and CEO of
Taseko.
"Our Board of Directors, after a thorough review of current
market conditions, the Company's financial position and the status
of permitting in Arizona, have
endorsed management's view that the best course of action is to
accelerate the construction of the PTF," continued Mr. Hallbauer.
"Over the past year, Florence personnel have been advancing
on-the-ground activities and have spent roughly US$4 million specific to the PTF. With
major components already on site, the timeline to having the test
facility operational is in the latter half of 2018 and involves the
construction of an SX/EW facility and the drilling of observation,
injection and recovery wells."
"At US$4,700 per ton of installed
capacity, Florence Copper is one of
the lowest capital intensity copper projects in the world. The
economics of the Project are too compelling for us to not be
rapidly advancing the project towards commercial production,
especially as a significant global copper deficit approaches.
Successful operation of the PTF will be a major step towards
realizing the US$920 million net
present value of the project. As we continue to move towards
commercial production, we fully expect this value to be reflected
in our share price," concluded Mr. Hallbauer.
In January of this year, the results from two additional years
of engineering work and technical studies were announced, which
enhanced project economics even further than the original
feasibility study.
Project Highlights:
- Pre-tax net present value of US$920
million at a 7.5% discount rate
- Pre-tax internal rate of return of 44% with a 2.3 year
payback
- Long-term copper price of US$3.00
per pound
- Operating costs of US$1.10 per
pound LME grade cathode copper
- Average annual production of 81 million pounds of copper
- 21 year operational life
- Total production in excess of 1.7 billion pounds of copper
- Total pre-production capital cost of US$200 million
The content of this release was reviewed and approved by Dan
Johnson PE, Vice-President/General Manager for Florence Copper, Inc., and a Qualified Person
under National Instrument 43-101.
The NI 43-101 technical report documenting these results is
available on www.sedar.com or the company's website at
www.tasekomines.com.
Russell Hallbauer
President and CEO
No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved of the
information contained in this news release.
CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING
INFORMATION
This document contains "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities
legislation and the United States Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, "forward looking statements")
that were based on Taseko's expectations, estimates and projections
as of the dates as of which those statements were made. Any
statements that express, or involve discussions as to,
expectations, believes, plans, objectives, assumptions or future
events or performance that are not historical facts, are
forward-looking statements. Generally, these forward-looking
statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking
terminology such as "outlook", "anticipate", "project", "target",
"believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "should" and similar
expressions.
Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown
risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company's
actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to
be materially different from those expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. These included but are not limited
to:
- uncertainties and costs related to the Company's exploration
and development activities, such as those associated with
continuity of mineralization or determining whether mineral
resources or reserves exist on a property;
- uncertainties related to the accuracy of our estimates of
mineral reserves, mineral resources, production rates and timing of
production, future production and future cash and total costs of
production and milling;
- uncertainties related to feasibility studies that provide
estimates of expected or anticipated costs, expenditures and
economic returns from a mining project;
- uncertainties related to the ability to obtain necessary title,
licenses and permits for development projects and project delays
due to third party opposition;
- our ability to comply with the extensive governmental
regulation to which our business is subject;
- uncertainties related to unexpected judicial or regulatory
proceedings;
- changes in, and the effects of, the laws, regulations and
government policies affecting our exploration and development
activities and mining operations, particularly laws, regulations
and policies;
- changes in general economic conditions, the financial markets
and in the demand and market price for copper, gold and other
minerals and commodities, such as diesel fuel, steel, concrete,
electricity and other forms of energy, mining equipment, and
fluctuations in exchange rates, particularly with respect to the
value of the U.S. dollar and Canadian dollar, and the continued
availability of capital and financing;
- the effects of forward selling instruments to protect against
fluctuations in copper prices and exchange rate movements and the
risks of counterparty defaults, and mark to market risk;
- the risk of inadequate insurance or inability to obtain
insurance to cover mining risks;
- the risk of loss of key employees; the risk of changes in
accounting policies and methods we use to report our financial
condition, including uncertainties associated with critical
accounting assumptions and estimates;
- environmental issues and liabilities associated with mining
including processing and stock piling ore;
- labour strikes, work stoppages, or other interruptions to, or
difficulties in, the employment of labour in markets in which we
operate mines, or environmental hazards, industrial accidents,
equipment failure or other events or occurrences, including third
party interference that interrupt the production of minerals in our
mines;
- the availability of, and uncertainties relating to the
development of, infrastructure necessary for the development of our
projects;
- our reliance upon key personnel; and
- uncertainties relating to increased competition and conditions
in the mining capital markets.
For further information on Taseko, investors should review the
Company's annual Form 40-F filing with the United States Securities
and Exchange Commission www.sec.gov and home jurisdiction filings
that are available at www.sedar.com, including the "Risk Factors"
included in our Annual Information Form.
SOURCE Taseko Mines Limited