LionOre Says Output Will Jump By 30% in 2007
By Romina Maurino
07 Dec 2006 at 10:00 AM EST
resourceinvestor.com
TORONTO (CP) -- Nickel miner LionOre Mining International Ltd. [TSX:LIM] says its output will increase by 30% to 44,300 tonnes next year, and believes it's ending 2006 on a strong note after a number of management appointments.
The Toronto-headquartered company, which has projects in Australia and Africa, said Thursday it has focused its exploration to increase the life of its mines and nickel deposits.
''We enter 2007 on a very strong and balanced performance platform,'' CEO Colin Steyn said during a conference call with analysts.
''All our brownfield expansion projects in both Australia and in Botswana have now been completed -on time and on budget - and this will provide a very strong production base from which to proceed in 2007 and will give us the wherewithal to complete this year on a strong note.''
LionOre said it will continue to focus on increasing the mine life and resources at existing operations, particularly in Australia, as well as growing production and reducing costs.
''The nickel market remains very robust and is forecast to continue along this line in 2007, with the industry struggling to meet demand, whilst the fundamentals remain very, very strong indeed,'' Steyn said.
The company will also seek additional opportunities to benefit from its Activox technology, a hydrometallurgical process developed by LionOre to treat a variety of metal sulphide concentrates. These opportunities may include acquisitions of nickel assets or joint ventures on deposits amenable to Activox processing.
On Wednesday, LionOre appointed Gerhard Potgieter as managing director of LionOre Africa, Brian Hill as managing director of LionOre Australia, and Gary Johnson as managing director of a new division called LionOre Technology.
The changes came less than a month after Peter Breese was named chief operating officer.
LionOre, with nickel operations in Western Australia, South Africa and Botswana as well as an Australian gold mine, tried to buy Falconbridge's Nikkelverk refinery in Norway, but that deal fell apart when a proposed merger between Falconbridge and Inco floundered.
Last month, LionOre reported a jump in third-quarter profit to US$148.1 million from $7.9 million a year ago.
Its stock closed Thursday off four cents at C$12.15 on the TSX, up from under $5 a year ago.
© The Canadian Press 2006 |
