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Strategic Minerals secures approval for Leigh Creek Copper Mine activities

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Global Mining Review,


Strategic Minerals plc has received approval for the planned mining activities of its wholly owned subsidiary, Leigh Creek Copper Mine (LCCM), accessing the Paltridge North (PN) deposit to be processed at the nearby Mountain of Light plant.

Highlights:

  • PEPR approval ensures LCCM now ‘shovel ready’, subject to finance.
  • Approval relates to the processing of copper oxide.
  • Rehabilitation Financial Assurance reduced by approximately AUS$800 000 to AUS$2.89 million.
  • Native Vegetation Fund contribution increased by approximately AUS$50 000 to AUS$139 035.
  • Requirement, as anticipated, to provide monitoring reports and to observe identified areas of historical significance to indigenous communities.

LCCM has received notification from the South Australian Department of Energy and Mining (DEM) under the Mining Act 1971 of approval of the Program for Environment Protection and Rehabilitation for Mineral Lease (ML) 5467 – Mountain of Light Copper Mine.

The approval is in line with expectations and relates to the mining and processing of copper oxide from LCCM’s PN deposit. From LCCM’s previous drilling results, the PN deposit appears to have a layer of waste material that needs to be removed (approximately 6 weeks mining) followed by a layer of copper oxide material and then descending into transitional sulfide ore. It is anticipated that it will be over 12 months after mining commences before the transitional ore is reached.

LCCM is confident that, by the time the transitional ore is reached, LCCM will have submitted and had approved by DEM, procedures for extracting and processing the transitional ore. This is because the submission will largely consist of the existing PEPR documentation with minor variations in relation to the extraction and handling of the transitional sulfide ores. Work on the submission has commenced.

As part of the negotiations with DEM in relation to the original conditional PEPR issued in July 2021, LCCM were able to reduce the rehabilitation bond by approximately AUS$800 000 from AUS$3.7 million to AUS$2.89 million reflecting reasoned proposals from the company’s mine manager John Speck. As LCCM currently has a AUS$200 000 deposit with DEM, this represents a net funding requirement of AUS$2.69 million.

While reviewing further information supplied by LCCM in relation to the conditional requirements, DEM have increased the required contribution to the Native Vegetation Fund from AUS$81 398.52 to AUS$139 035.

Also associated with the approval are a number of, expected, reporting requirements and observation of identified indigenous sacred sites.

John Peters, Managing Director of Strategic Minerals, comments:

“The approval, while having taken longer due to a number of factors, is welcomed, anticipated news. This provides a focal point by which to progress discussions currently underway with potential funders/joint venture partners.

“With regard to funding of the LCCM project, the company has had numerous parties review the project and, currently, has three interested parties who have signed the company’s confidentiality agreement and have been in our data room for a month or more. These parties reflect a European based, mining focused fund, a large, respected, global copper supplier with activities in South Australia and the equity investment and debt funding arms of a major Australian, internationally recognised bank.

“While recent declines in the copper price, associated with fears of global recession, have impacted the forecasted profitability of the project, the associated drop in the Australian Dollar/US Dollar exchange rate has partially offset the impact on profitability ensuring that the project remains an extremely attractive one from an investors perspective.”

Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/exploration-development/01072022/strategic-minerals-secures-approval-for-leigh-creek-copper-mine-activities/

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This article has been tagged under the following:

Australian mining news Copper mining news