Fortune Minerals Retains P&E Mining Consultants Inc. to Prepare the New Reserve Estimates, Mine Plan & Production Schedule for the Updated NICO Project Feasibility Study
New Mineral Reserves & project economics expected to benefit from higher metal prices
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LONDON, Ontario--( BUSINESS WIRE)--Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (“Fortune” or the “Company”) ( www.fortuneminerals.com) announces that it has retained P&E Mining Consultants Inc. (“P&E”) to prepare the new Mineral Reserve estimates, mine plan and production schedule for the updated NICO Project Feasibility Study currently in preparation by Worley Canada Services Ltd. (“Worley”) and other engineering companies. The NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project (“NICO Project”) is comprised of a planned open pit and underground mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (“NWT”) and a dedicated hydrometallurgical facility in Lamont County, Alberta where concentrates from the mine, and other feed sources, will be processed to value-added products. The new Mineral Reserves and project economics are expected to materially benefit from higher metal prices, particularly gold and bismuth.
Development of the vertically integrated NICO Project will strengthen North American critical mineral supply chain resilience and security, a priority for western governments that need to reduce their dependence on foreign entities of concern.
Share The new Mineral Reserve estimates will be based on updated costs, metal recoveries and prices, and currency exchange rates. The new mine plan and production schedule will be based on the updated Mineral Reserves and will also incorporate optimizations identified earlier by the Company, including reverting to the 4,650 tonnes of ore per day mill throughput rate used in the 2014 Feasibility Study, a larger contribution of gold-rich, higher margin ores from underground mining during early years of the mine life, and a stockpiling strategy that defers processing low margin ores until later in the mine life. The NICO deposit is an IOCG-type mineral deposit containing three critical minerals (cobalt- bismuth and copper), and more than one million ounces of in-situ gold as a highly liquid and countercyclical co-product to mitigate critical mineral price volatility.
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The economics for the NICO Project were previously assessed in a 2014 Feasibility Study by Micon International Limited (“Micon”) who will also prepare the Technical Report for the new Feasibility Study. The previous 2014 Feasibility Study identified Mineral Reserves totaling 33.1 million tonnes containing 1.1 million ounces of gold, 82.3 million pounds of cobalt, 102.1 million pounds of bismuth and 27.2 million pounds of copper supporting a 20-year mine life. That study used base case metal prices of US$1,350 per ounce of gold, US$16 per pound of cobalt in cathode (US$19.04 per pound of cobalt in sulphate), US$10 per pound of bismuth in ingots, and US$2.38 per pound of copper in cement at a currency exchange rate of C$1=US$0.88. While the base case commodity price assumptions for the updated Feasibility Study have not been determined at this time, current prices are approximately US$4,000 per ounce of gold, US$22 per pound of cobalt, US$17 per pound of bismuth, and US$5 per pound of copper at a currency exchange rate of C$1=US$0.71. Current commodity prices and the lower Canadian dollar will support significantly higher revenues to mitigate capital cost escalation.
For more detailed information about the NICO Mineral Reserves and certain technical information in this news release, please refer to the Technical Report on the NICO Project, entitled "Technical Report on the Feasibility Study for the NICO-Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper Project, Northwest Territories, Canada", dated April 2, 2014 and prepared by Micon International Limited which has been filed on SEDAR and is available under the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca.
NICO Project Critical Minerals
Development of the vertically integrated NICO Project will strengthen North American critical mineral supply chain resilience and security, a priority for western governments that need to reduce their dependence on foreign entities of concern. Notably, JPMorgan Chase indicated in a recent company podcast that it was working with the Trump administration on critical mineral supplies that are essential to national security and economic resilience. JPMorgan Chase announced plans to hire additional bankers and invest up to US$10 billion in critical mineral companies as part of a broader US$1.5 trillion pledge. The NICO Project will be a reliable producer of critical minerals in a Tier 1 jurisdiction with supply chain transparency and custody control of the contained metals from ores through to the production of value-added products needed for the energy transition, new technologies and defense.
The NICO Project is the largest deposit of bismuth in the world with 12% of global reserves and China currently controls 80% of global mine production and 90% of refined bismuth supply. Notably, China has placed restrictions on the export of bismuth to western countries in retaliation for tariffs, and this together with growing consumption, has caused prices to escalate from US$6 to US$17 per pound. The unique physical and chemical properties of bismuth are difficult to substitute with other metals in essential automotive, metallurgical, technology and defense applications.
Bismuth semiconductors are reportedly ten times faster than silicon-based chips and the bismuth-oriented chip ecosystem is expected to pave the way for the next advancements in computing. According to Nikkei Asia, after China placed export restrictions on bismuth, technology companies building Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) data centers for Nvidia, Amazon and Google pressed for quick resolution of U.S.-China trade negotiations as stockpiles of bismuth soldering paste - essential for high-speed, low-temperature electrical interconnects ran low. Manganese-bismuth magnets are resistant to demagnetization from heat and can replace rare earth elements in high performance magnets in high heat applications. In the nuclear industry, bismuth is used as a collector for plutonium in fuel reprocessing, it is a coolant in some reactor designs, and it replaces lead in radiation shielding. The most significant demand growth for bismuth is as an environmentally safe and non-toxic replacement for lead in brass and solders used in potable drinking water systems, free machining steel and aluminum, glass, ceramic glazes and ammunition. Bismuth-tin alloy is also used to make environmentally safe, permanent plugs to properly seal decommissioned oil and gas wells to prevent greenhouse gas leakage, blowouts and groundwater contamination.
Fortune plans to make cobalt sulphate heptahydrate at its Alberta Hydrometallurgical Facility used to make lithium-ion rechargeable batteries used in electric vehicles, portable electronics and stationary energy storage cells. Cobalt is also used in aerospace alloys, cutting tools, cemented carbides, permanent magnets, catalysts and pigments. About 78% of global cobalt supply is mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo (“DRC”), and most of the mines there are controlled by Chinese State-Owned Enterprises (“SOE’s”). Chinese SOE’s also control 83% of global refined cobalt supply and 93% of cobalt chemical supply. Chinese cobalt producers have been pursuing a policy of overproduction to provide low-cost raw materials to their domestic battery manufacturers while also driving foreign competitors out of business. The DRC government has therefore imposed export quotas on the Chinese producers to prevent price manipulation, and the cobalt price recently recovered to more than US$20 per pound.
The NICO Project contains a copper by-product, but Fortune also owns a 100% interest in the Sue-Dianne satellite deposit, 25 km north of NICO with 10 million tonnes of in-pit Mineral Resources, averaging 0.8% copper as a future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO concentrator.
For more detailed information on the Sue-Dianne deposit and its Mineral Resources, please refer to the Technical Report dated March, 2008 by Micon International Limited, entitled “Technical Report on a Mineral Resource Estimate For The Sue-Dianne Deposit, Mazenod Lake Area, Northwest Territories, Canada” and prepared by B. Terrence Hennessey, P.Geo. & Eugene Puritch, P.Eng., the qualified persons for the purposes of NI 43-101, a copy of which is available on SEDAR under the Company’s profile at www.sedarplus.ca under the Company’s profile.
The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release have been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune and Alex Mezei, M.Sc., P.Eng. Fortune’s Chief Metallurgist, who are "Qualified Persons" under National Instrument 43-101.
About Fortune Minerals
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in the Northwest Territories and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located 25 km north of the NICO deposit and is a potential future source of incremental feed to extend the life of the NICO concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the results of the updated Feasibility Study by Worley Canada Services Ltd and other engineering companies, including P&E Mining Consultants Inc. and Micon International Limited; the exercise of the option by the Company and the purchase of the JFSL site, the construction of the proposed Hydrometallurgical Facility at the JFSL site, the potential for expansion of the NICO Deposit and the Company’s plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the Company’s ability to secure the necessary financing to fund the exercise of the option and complete the purchase of the JFSL site, the Company’s ability to complete construction of a NICO Project Hydrometallurgical Facility; the Company’s ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project and the related Hydrometallurgical Facility and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt and bismuth; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks related to the new Mineral Reserves, Mine Plan and production schedule for the NICO Project, the Company may not be able to complete the purchase of the JFSL site and secure a site for the construction of a Hydrometallurgical Facility, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related Hydrometallurgical Facility, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company’s production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
Contacts
For further information please contact:
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com |
