HONG KONG, Jan. 6, 2016 /CNW/ - St. Augustine Gold and Copper Limited (TSX: SAU)
("St. Augustine" or the "Company") announced today that the
Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Philippine Government has
approved the Declaration of Mining Project Feasibility (DMPF) for
the King-king Copper-Gold Project located in Mindanao, Republic of
the Philippines. The permit
approval, which was awarded to St. Augustine's joint venture
partner, Nationwide Development Corporation (NADECOR), is the last
major permit required to initiate development, construction and
operation of the King-king Mine.
Through the Order dated December 29,
2015, NADECOR has been authorized to proceed to the
Development and Operating stages of its Mineral Production Sharing
Agreement (MPSA) No. 009-92-XI which includes the extraction and
sale of copper, gold and associated minerals within the
1,548-hectare (MPSA) area. St. Augustine is the exclusive
technical services provider of NADECOR.
Receipt of the DMPF is a significant milestone, and coupled with
the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) issued in
February 2015, enables St. Augustine
and NADECOR to jointly begin development, construction and
operation of the King-king Mine per approved plans and
strategies.
The DMPF approval was achieved subsequent to the receipt of the
ECC. The DMPF approval represents five years of comprehensive
technical, environmental, social and community engagement efforts
completed by NADECOR and St Augustine and related advisors.
NADECOR President Conrado T.
Calalang stated, "I am exceptionally proud of this
achievement and the diligent efforts made by the Project team and
the MGB representatives, who reviewed and approved the Project
designed to international best practice and standards."
St. Augustine Gold and Copper
Ltd. President and CEO Paolo A.
Villar added, "Receipt of the DMPF removes the last
significant hurdle to move forward with the development of the
King-king Project and represents our most significant milestone to
date. We look forward to working with NADECOR and all local
stakeholders to take King-king to the next stage of
development."
With the approval of the DMPF, NADECOR and SAGC will work
cooperatively to advance the Project to construction followed by
operation of the mine. Development of the King-king Project
is expected to have positive impacts for all project stakeholders
and the community at large, and has been designed to minimize any
environmental impact.
The King-king Copper-Gold Project
The King-king
Copper-Gold Project is located in Compostela Valley in the Philippines, and is expected to recover
3.16B lbs. of copper and 5.43M oz. of gold over its 25 year mine
and process life. According to the Preliminary Feasibility Study
that was released on September 18,
2013, and then filed on www.sedar.com on November 1, 2013, the Project has a pre-tax NPV
of $2.0 billion with an IRR of 24.8%.
The estimated mineral reserves amount to 617.9 million tonnes at
0.300% total copper and 0.395 g/t gold.
About St. Augustine
St. Augustine (SAU.T) is a
TSX-listed mining company focused on the development of the
King-king Copper-Gold Project. The Project is one of the largest
undeveloped copper-gold deposits in the world, and is listed as a
top three-priority mining project by the Philippine government.
NATIONAL INSTRUMENT 43-101 COMPLIANCE
Mr. James J.
Moore, P.E., Vice President Technical of St Augustine and a
qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") has
reviewed and approved the scientific, technical and economic
information contained in this news release.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING
STATEMENTS
This announcement includes certain
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian
securities legislation. All statements, other than statements
of historical fact included herein are forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties
and are based on certain factors and assumptions. 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. Important factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's
expectations include uncertainties related to fluctuations in gold,
copper and other commodity prices and currency exchange rates;
uncertainties relating to interpretation of drill results and the
geology, continuity and grade of mineral deposits; uncertainties
relating to the completion of a bankable feasibility study;
uncertainty of estimates of capital and operating costs, recovery
rates production estimates and estimated economic return; the need
for cooperation of the Company's joint venture partner and
government agencies in the development of the Company's mineral
projects; the need to obtain further permits and additional
financing to develop the Company's mineral projects; the
possibility of delay in development programs or in construction
projects and uncertainty of meeting anticipated program milestones
for the Company's mineral projects; and other risks and
uncertainties disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the
Annual Information Form dated March 19,
2015, and filed with Canadian securities regulatory
authorities on the SEDAR website at
www.sedar.com.
SOURCE St. Augustine Gold and Copper Limited