Marimaca Copper Corp. (“Marimaca Copper” or the
“Company”) (TSX: MARI) is pleased to
announce the results of the Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”)
for the Company’s flagship Marimaca Copper Project (“Marimaca” or
“the Project”), located in northern Chile. The study confirmed that
the Project has the potential to be a very low capital and
operating cost copper producer. The Company will host a webinar to
present the results of the study on Wednesday the 9th of September
2020.
Highlights
- US$524 million post-tax NPV8
(real) assuming a US$3.15/lb flat long-term copper price
- Payback of 2.6
years
- Post-tax IRR of
33.5%
- US$640 million post-tax NPV8
(real) assuming a US$3.45/lb flat long-term copper price
- Payback of 2.4
years
- Post-tax IRR of
38.0%
- Average annual steady state
EBITDA of US$169 million
- Pre-production capital cost of
US$285 million
- Capital intensity of
US$7,125/tonne of copper production capacity
- Assumes mining fleet is
purchased via lease to own to minimize upfront capital
costs
- Profitability Index (NPV/Capex) of 1.8x
- Life of mine average all-in-sustaining cash costs of
US$1.29/lb of copper1
- Life of mine average C1 Cash Costs of US$1.22/lb of
copper2
- Conventional open pit mining focused exclusively on
oxide mineralization
- Life of mine stripping ratio of 0.84:1
- Highest grade feed materials available in first five
years of production resulting in improved payback and overall
economics
- Conventional heap leach, SX-EW, processing
circuit
- Projected average life of mine metallurgical recoveries
in heap leach of approximately 76% of total copper supported by
data from several metallurgical testing programs
- Process makes use of readily available sea
water
- Average annual steady state copper production over
first 6 yrs of close to 40,000 tonnes of cathode
- Total mine life of 12 years
- Total recovered copper of approximately 430,000 tonnes
over the life of mine
- Significant ongoing
exploration potential for both oxide and sulphide mineralization
which could substantially extend the mine life of the
Project
The Preliminary Economic Assessment is
considered preliminary in nature and includes Inferred Mineral
Resources that are considered too speculative, geologically, to
have the economic considerations applied that would enable
classification as Mineral Reserves. There is no certainty that the
conclusions within the PEA will be realized. The PEA is based on
the material assumptions outlined in this document. These include
assumptions about the availability of funding. While the Company
considers all of the material assumptions to be based on reasonable
grounds, there is no certainty that they will prove to be correct
or that the range of outcomes indicated by the PEA can be
achieved.
No mineral reserves have been estimated for the
project. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have
demonstrated economic viability.
Luis Tondo, CEO of Marimaca Copper
commented:
“The exceptional results of the PEA have
confirmed our belief that Marimaca is a development stage copper
project of the highest quality. Its pre-production capital costs
places it in the very lowest tranche of projects in the copper
development space, while its low operating costs, which places it
in the bottom quartile of operating copper mines globally, means
that the project will be profitable even in lower copper price
environments.
“The Marimaca Project is substantially more
de-risked than a typical PEA level project due, primarily, to the
significant amount of technical work we have already completed,
which includes four phases of metallurgical testing, geotechnical
studies, nearly 100,000 metres of drilling over the Project and
engagement with various input providers for the Project.
“In a commodity which is dominated by large,
technically challenging projects in difficult jurisdictions, that
carry with them a level of development and operating risk
commensurate with their size and complexity, Marimaca represents a
copper development project at the other end of the spectrum.
Marimaca is a project, located in a tier 1 mining jurisdiction,
that can be both financed and built with lower levels of execution
risk, and which provides a platform for Marimaca Copper to become a
mid-tier copper producer in the future.”
Figure 1: 2026 Projected All-in-Sustaining
Cash Cost
Curve:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/897d8c4f-96af-4c1a-899b-a11f075647de
Executive Summary of Preliminary Economic
Assessment
The Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) for
Marimaca was completed by Ausenco Engineering in conjunction with
several Qualified Persons in various technical fields including NCL
Ingeniería y Construcción SpA (“NCL”) for mining and mine design
and mineral resource estimation, and Jo Loyola Consultores de
Procesos SpA (“JLCP”) on metallurgy and process design.
The PEA was prepared in accordance with the
requirements of the National Instrument 43-101, Standards of
Disclosure for Mineral Projects, (“NI43-101”) and is based on a
Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) completed by NCL, which comprised
70 million tonnes, with an average grade of 0.60% total copper
within the Measured & Indicated Categories of mineral resources
(approximately 420Kt of contained copper), and 40 million tonnes
with an average grade of 0.52% total copper within the Inferred
Category of mineral resources (approximately 224kt of contained
copper) (refer release on 2 December 2019). The
Preliminary Economic Assessment is considered preliminary in nature
and includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too
speculative, geologically, to have the economic considerations
applied that would enable classification as Mineral Reserves. There
is no certainty that the conclusions within the PEA will be
realized. The PEA is based on the material assumptions outlined in
this document. These include assumptions about the availability of
funding. While the Company considers all of the material
assumptions to be based on reasonable grounds, there is no
certainty that they will prove to be correct or that the range of
outcomes indicated by the PEA can be achieved.
No mineral reserves have been estimated for the
project. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have
demonstrated economic viability.
Marimaca is amenable to bulk, open pit, mining
methods and this study contemplates an owner operated fleet
utilising a leasing option to minimise upfront capital costs
associated with fleet purchase. The deposit’s favourable geometry
provides the Project with a low life of mine strip ratio of 0.84:1
as well as higher average grade in the first five years of mine
life. This shortens the capital payback period and improves overall
economics for the Project.
Due to the oxide resource, processing is via a
standard heap leach and Run-of-Mine (“ROM”) leach using sulphuric
acid and seawater followed by conventional solvent extraction and
electrowinning to produce an average of nearly 40,000 tonnes per
annum of high grade copper cathode during steady state production.
Heap leach pads are designed as dynamic leach pads where leach
residue, known as ripios, are removed after the leaching cycle and
stored in a dedicated waste facility. ROM leach pads are designed
as static leach pads, with stack height increasing over the life of
the mine.
Average recovery over the life of mine for the
heap leach is estimated to be approximately 76% of total copper,
and ranges from a high of approximately 82% in the pure oxide zones
(brochantite / atacamite), which make up the majority of the
project, down to approximately 49% in the enriched mineral subzone,
which comprises a much smaller proportion of the overall mineable
resource. Recovery over the life of mine for the ROM leach is
estimated to be approximately 40% of total copper, comprising 9% of
the estimated total copper cathode produced during the life of
mine.
Summary of Economic Assumptions and Results
Copper Price Assumption |
US$3.15/lb flat real |
Pre-Tax NPV8 & IRR |
US$757 million / 39.9% |
Post-Tax NPV8 & IRR |
US$524 million / 33.5% |
Payback Period from First Production |
2.6 years |
Pre-Production Capital Costs |
US$285 million3 |
Life of Mine Sustaining Capital |
US$66 million |
Ave. Annual Steady State EBITDA |
US$169 million |
Life of Mine C1 Operating Costs |
US$1.22/lb of copper4 |
Life of Mine All-in-Sustaining Cash Costs |
US$1.29/lb of copper5 |
Mine Life |
12 years |
Ave. Annual Metal Production (first 6 years) |
Approximately 40,000 tonnes |
Ave. Annual Metal Production Life of Mine (incl. ramp
up) |
35,600 tonnes |
Steady State Average Process Recovery (Heap and
ROM) |
76% / 40% |
Table 1: Summary of Economic Assumptions
and Results
Economics and Sensitivity Analysis
Copper Price US$/lb |
Post-Tax NPV8 Base Case US$ millions |
Post-Tax NPV8 Capex (-10%) US$ millions |
Post-Tax NPV8 Capex (+10%) US$ millions |
Post-Tax NPV8 Opex (-10%) US$ millions |
Post-Tax NPV8 Opex (+10%) US$ millions |
Base Case IRR (%) |
2.85 |
408 |
434 |
381 |
455 |
360 |
28.6% |
3.00 |
466 |
492 |
439 |
514 |
418 |
31.1% |
3.15 |
524 |
550 |
498 |
572 |
476 |
33.5% |
3.30 |
582 |
608 |
556 |
630 |
535 |
35.7% |
3.45 |
640 |
666 |
614 |
688 |
592 |
38.0% |
Table 2: Sensitivity Analysis to Copper
Price, Life of Mine Capital and Operating Costs
PRELIMINARY ECONOMIC ASSESSMENT OF THE
MARIMACA COPPER PROJECT
Geology and Mineral Resource
Estimate
The Marimaca Project comprises a dominant
structural feature of broad zones of sheeted dykes and fracture
zones, oriented north-north-east and dipping 45-60o to the east,
which host copper mineralisation at surface. The location of the
Marimaca deposit is interpreted to be controlled by a dilational
structural jog and the Company believes that this control applies
both to the MOD and to its downwards continuation into the sulphide
zone. There is strong evidence that the oxide zones encountered at
surface were generated as a result of the in-situ oxidation of
primary sulphide minerals, mostly chalcopyrite.
The PEA is based on the MRE, which was released
to the market in January 2020 (refer to
release on 2 December 2019). The
PEA includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too
speculative, geologically, to have the economic considerations
applied that would enable classification as Mineral Reserves. There
is no certainty that the conclusions within the PEA will be
realized. The PEA is based on the material assumptions outlined in
this document. These include assumptions about the availability of
funding. While the Company considers all of the material
assumptions to be based on reasonable grounds, there is no
certainty that they will prove to be correct or that the range of
outcomes indicated by the PEA can be achieved.
No mineral reserves have been estimated for the
project. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have
demonstrated economic viability.
The MRE was based on 346 reverse circulation
holes (“RC”) and 39 diamond holes (“DD”) for a total of 91,210m
drilled between 2016 and 2019 and was completed at a range of
Cut-Off grades by independent consultants NCL Ingeniería y
Construcción SpA (“NCL”). To demonstrate reasonable prospects for
eventual economic extraction, a series of Lerchs-Grossmann pit
shell optimizations was completed by NCL, utilizing appropriate
operating costs, recoveries obtained from metallurgical test work,
and a long term US$3.00/lb copper price. The resources were
estimated only for oxide, mixed, wad and enriched copper
mineralization which can be processed by heap leaching (HL) and run
of mine (ROM) dump leaching followed by solvent-extraction and
electrowinning to produce copper cathode. Primary sulphide
mineralization occurring in deeper parts of the deposit, which are
within the constraining pit shell, is not included in the MRE or
for the purposes of this PEA.
Cut-off grade (%
CuT) |
Measured |
Indicated |
Measured + Indicated |
Inferred |
Mineral kt |
CuT (%) |
CuS (%) |
Mineral kt |
CuT (%) |
CuS (%) |
Mineral kt |
CuT (%) |
CuS (%) |
Mineral kt |
CuT (%) |
CuS (%) |
0.40 |
14,403 |
0.81 |
0.55 |
30,600 |
0.74 |
0.48 |
45,003 |
0.76 |
0.50 |
23,607 |
0.70 |
0.40 |
0.30 |
17,865 |
0.72 |
0.49 |
40,253 |
0.64 |
0.42 |
58,118 |
0.67 |
0.44 |
33,410 |
0.60 |
0.35 |
0.22 |
20,721 |
0.66 |
0.44 |
49,666 |
0.57 |
0.37 |
70,387 |
0.60 |
0.39 |
43,015 |
0.52 |
0.31 |
0.18 |
22,072 |
0.63 |
0.42 |
54,109 |
0.54 |
0.35 |
76,181 |
0.57 |
0.37 |
47,164 |
0.49 |
0.29 |
0.10 |
23,087 |
0.61 |
0.41 |
57,619 |
0.52 |
0.33 |
80,706 |
0.54 |
0.35 |
50,641 |
0.47 |
0.27 |
Table 3: NI43-101 Mineral Resource
Estimate at Various Cut-off Grades
* CuT means total copper and CuS means acid
soluble copper. Mineral resources that are not mineral
reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral
resource technical and economic parameters included: copper price
US$3.00/lb; mining cost US$2.00/t; HL processing cost including
G&A US$9.00/t; ROM processing cost including G&A US$2.50/t;
selling cost US$0.07/lb Cu; heap leach recovery 76% of CuT; ROM
recovery 40% of CuT and a 44°-46°pit slope angle
The deposit has a significant higher-grade zone
which occurs from surface in its southern extent and provides a
logical target for the early years of mine life at Marimaca. The
average grade expected during the first five years of mine life is
0.78% total copper and is dominantly comprised of the main oxide
mineral sub-zones of brochantite, atacamite and chrysocolla.
Significant potential exists to increase oxide
resources within proximity to Marimaca, but also in the broader
claims packages that surround this exciting project. Furthermore,
the Company has recently released the results of a high-resolution,
drone mounted, magnetic survey, which indicates substantial
potential for sulphide mineralization below the Marimaca Oxide
Deposit (refer to announcement on 14 July
2020).
Figure 2: Plan View and Long Section of
Mineral Resource Estimate Highlighting High Grade Zones from
Surface:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5785acc6-b876-4397-8d8f-b4f656f64d55
Mining
The Marimaca Oxide Deposit commences at surface
and its geometry means that it is amenable to bulk, open pit,
mining methods, which have been contemplated for the purposes of
this study. The study considers an owner operated mining fleet
based on lease to own contracts with reputable heavy equipment
providers.
The mine will utilise convention drilling,
blasting and shovel loading into trucks on bench heights of 10-20 m
depending on location within the open pit. The mine plan was
designed to deliver a consistent production profile of
approximately 40,000 tonnes per annum of copper cathode during
steady state operations.
The open pit was designed based on eight phases
of development targeting the higher grade, dominantly oxide,
mineralisation in the central portion of the deposit area in the
early years of the mine life and gradually expanding, and deepening
the pit, over the mine life.
Due to the higher grade of the early years of
mine life, the heap leach production tonnes in years 1 to 5 are
designed to average approximately 5.4Mtpa before increasing from
year 6 onwards to approximately 9.0Mtpa of material. The ROM leach
production was designed to be variable to minimize the use of
stockpiles, which can add complexity to the mine planning and
management, and ranges from a low side of 588ktpa up to a maximum
of 6Mtpa of ROM leach material.
Figure 3: Open Pit Development
Phases:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/d99e868b-a34d-4ea9-9c2b-bc5218e204be
The open pit has a low life of mine strip ratio
(including pre-stripping) of 0.84:1. The strip ratio has decreased
from the mineral resource estimate (at a cut-off of 0.22% total
copper) because, in mine planning, it was noted that numerous areas
of mineralized waste (less than 0.22% total copper) are mined in
the proposed PEA mine plan. Although they may be considered as
marginal on the heap leach, these tonnes are considered to be
economic on the ROM leach, where the additional costs of crushing
and agglomeration are removed. As a result, these tonnes, which
would have previously been classified as waste, have now been
classified as mineable resource for the purposes of copper
production.
Figure 4: Life of Mine Production
Plan:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ac87d17a-2062-44e8-86ec-8d0e9d21c298
Based on the geotechnical information obtained
from the extensive drilling campaigns conducted at Marimaca, the
mining area was divided into three clear geotechnical zones. In
Zone 1, due to favorable geotechnical conditions the overall pit
slope angle was designed at approximately 52 degrees utilising
double benching at 20 m heights and face angle of 75 degrees. In
Zone 2, the overall pit slope angle was reduced to approximately 42
degrees utilising 10 m bench heights and a bench face angle of 70
degrees. Zone 3 was similar to Zone 2, but with a bench face angle
of 75 degrees, which slightly increased the overall slope angle to
nearly 45 degrees.
In general, the rocks encountered in the hanging
and footwall zones appear to show a good degree of competency, but
further geotechnical work will be required to confirm these design
parameters for future studies.
Figure 5: Open Pit
Geometry:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1ed6b18f-195f-4d5c-b6dd-edd36b952f57
Metallurgical Testing
The Company has completed three phases of
metallurgical test work between April 2017 and March 2018, with a
fourth phase completed in July 2020. The results of Phases 1, 2 and
3 were included in the NI43-101 Definitive Feasibility Study for
Marimaca 1-23, released on the 29th of June 2018. Phase 4
metallurgical testing is underway.
These tests have been carried out by Geomet
S.A., a well-known Chilean laboratory with considerable experience
in metallurgical programs for copper deposits in Chile. Phase 4 has
been designed and executed under the supervision of Marcelo Jo of
Jo & Loyola Process Consultants, who has 35 years’ experience
in processing. He is supported by Randolph E. Scheffel, a
Consultant Metallurgical Engineer with over 45 years’ experience in
copper processing.
The tests in Phases 1, 2 and 3 were completed on
materials obtained from Marimaca to characterise the metallurgical
response of the deposit to different operational conditions.
Samples were selected to consider the various mineral subzones
defined at Marimaca, classified based on dominant mineralogy,
including oxide, wad, mixed and enriched. The first three phases
were performed on a variety of parameters including agglomeration
conditions, granulometry, column height, irrigation rates and acid
consumption. These tests were followed up with more detailed
analysis including bottle roll Iso-pH tests. For these tests,
samples were also selected to consider the various mineral subzones
defined at Marimaca including oxide, wad, mixed and enriched.
The fourth phase program comprised broader, more
detailed and rigorous tests, including mini and full-scale column
tests with and without seawater.
While the PEA has been based, primarily, on the
metallurgical results from Phases 1, 2 and 3 metallurgical programs
(refer to announcement from 24 June 2020), the
recent results from the Phase 4 program have confirmed that the
material from Marimaca is amenable to heap leaching with sulphuric
acid, with relatively fast leach kinetics, industry average acid
consumption, relative to similar materials, and expected recoveries
of approximately 76% of total copper across the life of mine.
Recoveries are variable across mineral sub-zones and are expected
to be highest in the dominant brochantite/atacamite zones, at
approximately 82% of total copper, and lowest in the enriched
zones, at approximately 49%. The LOM recoveries for the ROM leach
is expected to be 40%.
Processing
The PEA contemplates the recovery of copper
using a conventional heap and ROM leach followed by standard
solvent extraction and electrowinning to produce high grade copper
cathode. Due to the desert location, with limited flora and fauna,
the project considers the use of seawater, pumped less than 25km
from the coast, meaning no local aquifers will be exploited.
Figure 6: Schematic Overview of Heap Leach
Solvent Extraction-Electrowinning Processing of Copper Ores at
Marimaca:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1857cde4-d009-433a-b652-e7d4bcae105f
Coarse heap leach material is trucked from the
open pit to be fed directly into the primary crushing plant. It is
then crushed using a two-stage crushing process in closed circuit
with screens to achieve sizing of P80 passing half an inch
following which it is sent for agglomeration using sulphuric acid
diluted with seawater. Given the low quantity of fine materials and
clays observed in the mineral types to be mined at Marimaca, it is
expected that the risk of generation of impermeable layers and
occurrence of channelling, which can negatively impact heap leach
recoveries, will be minor. Agglomeration is used primarily to
create an agglomerated material with fines attaching to the coarser
material, which also improves stability and to add sulphuric acid
to the heap leach material prior to stacking on the leach pads.
Lower grade ROM material, which is not considered to be economic
through the crushing and agglomeration steps, is sent directly to
the ROM leach pads without further preparation.
Figure 7: Mass Flow Diagram of Liquids in
Heap and ROM
Leach:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c60073d3-cf1d-4a2c-90be-d6d1dff9417c
A stack height of 4 metres was considered as the
design basis for the heap leach pad(s) and up to 20 metres high for
the ROM leach pads. The ROM leach pad is designed to be a permanent
pad, while the heap leach pads are designed to be on-off (dynamic)
pads, which have become very common in heap leach operations in
Chile, where the leached residues (known as ripios) are removed
from the pads and stored in a dedicated waste facility.
The leaching pad areas will be designed in two
stages based on the feed grade delivered from the mine plan. In the
first stage, which is designed for the higher-grade materials
available in the first five years of mine life, the design
contemplates 11 leach pads with a total surface are of 308,000 m2.
In the second phase, which includes years six to twelve, an
additional 7 leach pads are constructed, increasing the total
surface area to 504,000 m2. The larger footprint takes into account
the higher tonnage and lower expected grade which will be processed
during the second half of the mine life in order to ensure a
consistent production profile of approximately 40,000 tonnes of
copper per annum is delivered to the SX-EW plant. Both heap and ROM
leach pads are irrigated using a conventional recycled raffinate
from the solvent extraction phase with additional sulphuric acid
added as required based on the acid consumption profile of the
various mineralogies being treated. Leaching occurs in two cycles
of approximately 52 and 40 days respectively for total leaching
time of 92 days. Following the first cycle, an Intermediate Leach
Solution (“ILS”) is recirculated through the heap leach before
sending the Pregnant Leach Solution (“PLS”) to the SX-EW plant for
final processing.
The main water consumption of the
project it is related to the heap leaching process.
The Company will utilize seawater with an average rate of
0.25 m3/t for oxide feeds, 0.28 m3/t for sulphide feeds,
and 0.125 m3/t of ROM leach feed. Considering seasonal
fluctuations as well as other requirements of water and the
variation in amount of material treated annually, a nominal feed
rate of up to 100 l/s is being considered for sea water
supply.
The main power consumption of the project will
be related to the Electrowinning process. The Company will utilize
an average of 123 MWh/year during the first 5 years, increasing to
an average of 143 MWh/year for the remaining project life.
Material Storage Facilities
The Company is proposing the use of on/off leach
pads which will necessitate the development of a separate waste
dump facility for the storage of the ripios or leached residue.
These have been designed using standard Chilean protocols, to
minimise potential leakage into the surrounding environment of any
residues which may present an environmental risk.
The ripios waste dumps will have approximately a
total lined base surface of 1,500,000 m2. The stack height of the
ripios storage facilities will be increased over the 12-year life
of the mine and will house approximately 88 million tonnes of
material stored and requiring future rehabilitation.
Two mine waste storage facilities areas, to be
located to the west and south of the pit, were designed for the
project. The facilities were designed in 40 m lifts. Each lift will
be constructed at an approximate angle of repose of 37°.
A ROM pad area was designed in a flat valley,
located in between the mine waste storage facilities, where the ROM
leach process will take place. The leaching of this lower grade
material is planned in 10-20 m lifts. The design of the facility
was developed every three 10 m lifts at an approximate angle of
repose of 37° and a set-back of 27 m, resulting in an overall slope
angle no higher than 22° and a maximum slope height of 100 m.
The mine plan considers the stockpiling of some
lower grade material for later re-handling at the end of the life
of mine to the primary crusher for heap leaching. The low-grade
stockpile was designed at the toe of the south waste storage
facility at an approximate angle of repose of 37° and a total
height of 50 m.
Infrastructure & Location
Marimaca benefits from an outstanding location,
proximate to all infrastructure required to develop an open pit,
SX-EW copper mine. Infrastructure requirements include water
supply, power supply, access roads, sulphuric acid supply and other
facilities.
Power Supply
The PEA contemplates that the power required for
the project will be taken from the national grid, which provides
stable, low cost, electricity. The most convenient connection will
be with an existing 110 kV line, which runs approximately
7 km to the north of the proposed plant site at its closest
point. For this PEA it is assumed a 7 km, 110 kV, spur line
will be built to the main mine substation, which will be placed
close to the SX/EW plant at the Marimaca plant site. The substation
will be 30 MW capacity with a step down from 110kV to 23 kV
for distribution around the plant site.
Water Supply
Marimaca Copper has approached several utility
companies in the Mejillones area, which are offering to build,
maintain and operate a pipeline from their sea water intake to the
Marimaca leaching facility and sell the water to the project at the
plant site. The PEA contemplates the installation of a 6 km
long pipeline extending from an existing third-party seawater
pipeline and will discharge into the main water reservoir at
Marimaca. The head pond has been designed with a capacity of
40,000 m3, which represents 5 days of water feed at normal
operating rates. From the head pond, water will be distributed to
the different centers within the broader processing facility. One
center will contain a small reverse osmosis plant to produce fresh
water which will be required for a small number of processing
stages as well as other installations.
Figure 8: Map Showing Proximity to Key
Infrastructure for
Marimaca:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/45e844f8-b1bc-4471-a389-8435acbecc5e
Site Layout and Infrastructure
The PEA contemplates the leach pads, ripios
dumps and process plant infrastructure being located in a valley to
the west of the Marimaca deposit. The valley provides a relatively
flat area, which will minimize the requirement for cut and fill
earthworks, while providing sufficient space for the various
components of the mine site.
Figure 9: Mine Site
Layout:https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c2fd15d6-8672-4951-abf5-74a72fa0e029
Roads
The Project benefits from several roads which
fall under the responsibility of the local and regional government
and, therefore, are not required to be upgraded or maintained by
Marimaca Copper. Marimaca is accessible from Route 1, which is a
paved highway that joins Antofagasta and Mejillones to the cities
further to the north. The Mejillones Route B-240, which is a
non-paved road branches off Route 1 to the east.
Approximately 10 km to the east of the
junction of Route 1 and the B-240, there is an existing gravel road
which branches to the south and leads to the proposed Marimaca
plant site, which is approximately 7 km to the south. A
similar standard is anticipated to be used for the construction of
internal roads which connect the different mine and plant
installations. The haulage road which mine trucks will use to carry
the material from the mine to the primary crusher is included as
part of the mine design.
Figure 10: Non-Paved B-240 Road with
Bischofite Covering (Left) and Road to Proposed Plant Site
(Right):https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e524b943-047e-48f5-8f72-0b198e223f09
Capital and Operating Costs
The projected pre-production capital costs for
Marimaca, which will be incurred over a 2-year construction period,
were estimated on the basis of information from a variety of
sources including direct equipment quotes, derivation from first
principles and factoring from comparable benchmarks, and are
summarized in the following table:
ITEM |
COST ESTIMATE US$ millions |
Mining Equipment6 |
$14.0 |
Mine Development |
$9.2 |
Crushing & Agglomeration |
$22.7 |
Leaching |
$43.5 |
SX-EW Plant |
$81.1 |
Infrastructure (incl acid tanks, power supply, buildings) |
$14.7 |
Sub Total Direct |
$185.1 |
Indirect Costs |
$42.6 |
Contingency |
$56.9 |
Total Pre-Production Capital Cost |
$284.7 |
Table 4: Summary of Estimated
Pre-Production Capital Costs
ITEM |
Cost Estimate US$ / tonne of material processed |
Cost Estimate US$ / lb of Copper |
Mining (incl. grade control, drill & blast, load and haul) |
$3.19 |
$0.44 |
Processing Costs (incl crushing, acid, SX-EW and ripios
disposal) |
$4.95 |
$0.69 |
G&A |
$0.54 |
$0.09 |
Total Operating Cost |
$8.68 |
$1.22 |
Table 5: Summary of Estimated Average
Life of Mine Operating Cost per Tonne of Material
Processed
The Preliminary Economic Assessment is
considered preliminary in nature and includes Inferred Mineral
Resources that are considered too speculative, geologically, to
have the economic considerations applied that would enable
classification as Mineral Reserves. There is no certainty that the
conclusions within the PEA will be realized. The PEA is based on
the material assumptions outlined in this document. These include
assumptions about the availability of funding. While the Company
considers all of the material assumptions to be based on reasonable
grounds, there is no certainty that they will prove to be correct
or that the range of outcomes indicated by the PEA can be
achieved.
No mineral reserves have been estimated for the
project. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have
demonstrated economic viability.
Technical Reporting and Qualified Persons
The NI43-101 technical report will be released
within 45 days of this news release and will be available for
review on Marimaca’s website and SEDAR. The technical report will
be authorised and signed off by the following Qualified
Persons:
Qualified Person |
Company |
PEA Section |
Professional Affiliation / Registration |
Francisco Castillo |
Ausenco Chile Ltda |
Chapters 1 to 3 and 17 to 27 |
Competent person in mining engineering N° register 179 Chile |
Robin Kalanchey |
Ausenco |
Chapters 17, 21 and 22 |
Competent person in metallurgical engineering Canada |
Luis Oviedo |
NCL Ingeniería y Construcción SpA |
Chapters 4 to 12 and 14 |
Competent person in geology N° register 013 Chile |
Carlos Guzman |
NCL Ingeniería y Construcción SpA |
Chapter 15 and 16 |
Competent person in mining engineering FAusIMM N° register 229036
Australia |
Marcelo Jo López |
Jo y Loyola Process Consulting |
Chapter 13 |
Competent person in extractive metallurgy N° register 360
Chile |
The QPs confirm that they have visited the
Marimaca Project, have verified, and are responsible for, the
information contained in this news release and consent to its
publication.
Contact Information
For further information please visit
www.marimaca.com or contact:
Tavistock+44 (0) 207 920
3150Jos Simson/Emily Mossmarimaca@tavistock.co.uk
Forward Looking Statements
This news release includes certain
“forward-looking statements” under applicable Canadian securities
legislation. These statements relate to future events or the
Company’s future performance, business prospects or opportunities.
Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the
impact of a rebranding of the Company, the future development and
exploration potential of the Marimaca Project. Actual future
results may differ materially. There can be no assurance that such
statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future
events could differ materially from those anticipated in such
statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs,
opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and
are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while
considered reasonable by Marimaca Copper, are inherently subject to
significant business, economic, competitive, political and social
uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and
unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to
be materially different from the results, performance or
achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions
and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such
factors include, without limitation: risks related to share price
and market conditions, the inherent risks involved in the mining,
exploration and development of mineral properties, the
uncertainties involved in interpreting drilling results and other
geological data, fluctuating metal prices, the possibility of
project delays or cost overruns or unanticipated excessive
operating costs and expenses, uncertainties related to the
necessity of financing, the availability of and costs of financing
needed in the future as well as those factors disclosed in the
Company’s documents filed from time to time with the securities
regulators in the Provinces of British Columbia, Alberta,
Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince
Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador. Accordingly, readers
should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
Marimaca Copper undertakes no obligation to update publicly or
otherwise revise any forward-looking statements contained herein
whether as a result of new information or future events or
otherwise, except as may be required by law.
1 All in sustaining costs is defined as cash
cost (C1) plus general and administrative expenses, sustaining
capital expenditure, deferred stripping, royalties and lease
payments and is used by management to evaluate performance
inclusive of sustaining expenditure required to maintain current
production levels.
2 C1 cash cost includes all mining and
processing costs less any profits from by-products and is used by
management to arrive at an approximated cost of finished metal.
3 Assumes mining fleet is financed through a
lease to own contract structure to minimize upfront capital
cost.
4 All in sustaining costs is defined as cash
cost (C1) plus general and administrative expenses, sustaining
capital expenditure, deferred stripping, royalties and lease
payments and is used by management to evaluate performance
inclusive of sustaining expenditure required to maintain current
production levels.
5 C1 cash cost includes all mining and
processing costs less any profits from by-products and is used by
management to arrive at an approximated cost of finished metal.
6 Assumes mining fleet is financed using a lease
to own contract structure to minimize upfront capital cost.
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