VANCOUVER, April 12, 2019 /CNW/ - Taseko Mines Limited (TSX:
TKO; NYSE American: TGB) ("Taseko" or the "Company") is pleased to
announce that Taseko's Florence
Copper production test facility is fully operational, from
the wellfield to the SX/EW plant, and producing copper.
Over the past three months approximately 1.5 million tons of
copper ore has been contacted underground with leach solution.
Copper concentrations in the solution has recently risen to levels
which have allowed the SX/EW plant to begin operation and produce
copper.
Russell Hallbauer, President and
CEO of Taseko commented, "As expected, and reported in our
2017 technical report, the initial leaching period has taken
approximately three months and all results are in line with
expectations. The scale up from our laboratory and feasibility
testing to the commercial scale has been relatively
seamless. With the entire test wellfield and SX/EW plant now
operating as a continuous unit, we will use the coming months to
refine operational parameters which will help with the ramp up of
the commercial plant. The proportion of ore contacted underground
with leach solution (known as "Sweep Efficiency") has been very
encouraging to-date. Our modelling predicted a 55% Sweep Efficiency
after the first year of leaching and we have already achieved that
level after the first three months."
Mr. Hallbauer continued, "We have always maintained a high level
of confidence in the comprehensive technical work we have
undertaken on the in situ process. The data we continue to collect
from the many observation, monitoring and point-of-compliance wells
is demonstrating the integrity of our injection and recovery
process. Not only is the data proving that we are able to maintain
hydraulic control of the leach solution underground, but it is
providing valuable data to validate our leach model as well as
optimize well designs and performance and hydraulic control
parameters."
"We have steadily advanced the project towards commercial
production, de-risking it considerably from when we acquired
Florence Copper in 2014, and we
expect to have a financing package in place and to be starting
construction of the commercial facility in the next 12 months.
Florence Copper will produce an
average of 85 million pounds of copper annually for 20 years at an
average operating cost of US$1.10 per
pound. With a net present value of roughly C$1 billion, there is a huge disconnect with
Taseko's market capitalization. This valuation gap should close
considerably in the coming months as we move closer to the
construction of the lowest capital intensity project in the world,
that will have operating costs in the lowest quartile of the
industry," concluded Mr. Hallbauer.
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 Florence Copper NI 43-101 technical report 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.
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SOURCE Taseko Mines Limited