Major Mongolian copper/gold project near production
17th May 2012
VANCOUVER, May 17 – Overall construction of the 1st phase of the big Oyu Tolgoi Copper/Gold Project in southern Mongolia is over 82% complete and on track for initial production in the second half of calendar 2012, with commercial production expected in the first half of 2013.
The world's largest undeveloped copper/gold project is being developed as an openpit operation, with mining and stockpiling of the first ore from the phase-one pit begun a few weeks ago. A copper concentrator plant, with an initial throughput of 100,000tpd, is being built to produce a copper-gold-silver concentrate later this year.
In conjunction with the surface activities, an 85,000tpd underground block-cave mine is also being developed at the Hugo North deposit. The throughput capacity of the concentrator plant is expected to be expanded to 160,000tpd to process ore from both the open pit and underground mines, with the underground mine scheduled to commence operations in 2016.
Long-term sales contracts have been signed on a substantial portion of Oyu Tolgoi’s total concentrate production, with most of it initially expected to go to China.
Canadian company and 66% stake holder Ivanhoe Mines has signed binding MOUs with shareholder Rio Tinto that established Rio Tinto’s support for a series of funding measures expected to cover project capital requirements for the next several years. These measures are expected to be sufficient to complete both the phase-one and phase-two development programs at Oyu Tolgoi.
During the latest quarter, Ivanhoe’s 57.6%-owned SouthGobi Resources sold about 0.84Mt of coal at an average $US56.79t, pushing revenue up from $20.2M in Q1 2011 to $40.2M.
The company’s 58.9%-owned Ivanhoe Australia began initial copper/gold production at its Osborne mine in NW Queensland, Australia, in the latest quarter, with milling rates ramping up to target levels of 5,200tpd.
In Q1 1212, Ivanhoe posted a net loss of $80.6M, compared to a net loss of $492.5M in the previous corresponding quarter. The company also plans a name change to Turquoise Hill Resources at its AGM on June 28, 2012.
Also in the May 9 - 15, 2012 edition
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- Facilitating change
- ASIA DESK
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- CABBIE'S CORNER
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- COAL
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- EUROPE
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- FINANCE
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- Time for action for last man standing
- HEAVY METAL
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- Ascot stays on gold growth course
- Azumah fast-tracks Wa project planning
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- Big bucks for Bucko
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- Boss lines up 12-months exploration funding
- Brave New World clings to optimistic production targets
- Breakaway stays with Altia project
- Brumby flags Oakover resource increase
- Canaco looks beyond Tanzanian resources
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- Cape Lambert takes solid profit from Leichhardt sale
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- ISSUES
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- Mining in the mainframe
- PROJECT WATCH
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- VIEW FROM THE WEST END
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