Modern Mining August 2018

MINING News

Firestone Diamonds, whose shares are quoted on AIM, says in its update on oper- ations at its 75 %-owned Liqhobong mine in Lesotho for the quarter ended 30 June 2018 (Q4 of the company’s 2018 financial year) that 261 985 carats were sold in the quarter (Q3: 217 380 carats). The diamonds realised a revenue of US$18,6 million (Q3: US$17,6 million) at an average value of US$71 per carat (Q3: US$81 per carat), mainly due to a larger proportion of run of mine diamonds and fewer valuable stones recovered. Net cash increased by US$2,5 million in the quarter to US$27,8 million. Liqhobong diamond mine enjoys a record quarter The mine maintained its zero lost time injury record with over 6,2 million man hours having now been worked since proj- ect commencement in July 2014. The exceptional operational per- formance resulted in several new production-related records during the final quarter and market guidance being achieved for the financial year to end-June 2018. Recoveries were 36,8 % higher than Q3 at 263 512 carats, resulting in a full year total of 835 832 carats, within guidance of between 800 000 and 850 000 carats. The

grade of 25,7 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht) was higher than the 22,2 cpht in Q3 and the 22,0 cpht for FY 2018. Tonnes treated were 18,0 % higher than Q3 at 1,02 Mt, resulting in a full year total of 3,8 Mt, ahead of guidance of 3,6 Mt. The costs for Q4 were US$10,98 per tonne treated and US$11,91 per tonne treated in FY 2018 despite a stronger local currency during most of the year. Paul Bosma, Firestone’s CEO, com- mented: “The fourth quarter saw record production. We were able to access the high grade blocks in the mine plan and thanks to excellent operational perfor- mance we were able to achieve record carat recoveries. The increased volume translated into an improved cash position at the end of the financial year. “As always, the average dollar per carat achieved is highly sensitive to the inci- dence of special stones, of which we saw a lower incidence in this particular quarter. However, we continue to have grounds for optimism given the parts of the orebody we plan to exploit over the next 12months. We recently completed a structural and geotechnical assessment of the pit and the outputs are now being used to rerun our life of mine plan. We look forward to updating the market in this respect during the first half of FY 2019.”  ment is an expansion of Stage 1 production based on the market demand for Bunyu’s graphite products and leveraging the large scale graphite mineral resource and Bunyu’s close proximity to critical infrastructure.” According to Volt’s Non-Executive Chairman, Asimwe Kabunga, the delivery of a robust Stage 1 Feasibility Study is a key step towards unlocking the considerable underlying value of Bunyu. “Once funding is obtained, the company will proceed with the Front End Engineering and Design for Stage 1 and place orders for long lead time components. Concurrent with the Stage 1 development, Volt also plans to commence work on the definitive feasibility study for the Stage 2 expansion.” The proposed new mine will be a conventional drill, blast, load and haul open-pit operation with waste material stacked in waste dumps. Processing will be by well-proven crushing, grinding and flotation methods. 

A recent view of mining operations at Liqhobong (photo: Firestone).

Volt delivers Stage 1 Feasibility Study on Bunyu Flake graphite development company Volt Resources (VRC), listed on the ASX, has completed a positive Feasibility Study (FS) into the Stage 1 development of its flagship Bunyu graphite project located in Tanzania. Stage 1 financial analysis delivers a favourable NPV and IRR over a payback period of 4,4 years. The total EBITDA is put at US$93,6 million over the Stage 1 project period. The average FOB operating cost over Stage 1 is estimated at US$664/tonne and the start-up capital cost at US$31,8 million.

following the completion of a large scale Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) in December 2016. Concurrent with the PFS completion, Volt announced the largest graphite JORC mineral resource in Tanzania and one of the largest in the world. “Following a detailed strategic review of product markets and financial markets, in May 2017 Volt announced a clear pathway to transition the company into a globally significant producer of material quantities of high quality graphite products. It was decided that this accelerated pathway would be achieved via the development of the Bunyu project over two stages. “Stage 1 is focused on the development of a nominal 20 000 to 25 000 t/a graphite mine and processing facility in Tanzania with planned exports of graphite products into the USA, China and other market,” he continues. “The proposed Stage 2 develop-

Volt’s Chief Executive Officer, Trevor Matthews, commented: “The Stage 1 Feasibility Study is another important step forward in Volt’s plan to become one of the top three global producers of natural flake graphite. “The company has been implement- ing a two-stage development strategy

14  MODERN MINING  August 2018