Amur Minerals Corporation (“Amur” or the “Company”), the exploration and resource development company, is pleased to announce that Oreall LLC (“Oreall”) has completed the Permanent Conditions Report (“TEO”) on its far east Russia Kun-Manie nickel-copper sulfide project.
Oreall’s analysis and documentation is complete and is now undergoing the mandatory review process by the Russian Government Commission for Natural Resources Reserves (“GKZ”). Completion of the GKZ review will establish the reserves available for open pit mining at its “Detailed Exploration and Mining Production” licence (BLG 15883 TE). Subsequent approval, the reserves will be utilised to establish the Russian approved mine plan for Kun-Manie.
Oreall results are based on the cumulative exploration information and comprehensive technical reports on mining, processing, metallurgical recoveries, engineering, intermediate product generation of both nickel and copper concentrates, environmental setting, transport and non-binding offtake agreements specific to the Kun-Manie mineralisation. Moscow based Oreall has compiled Russian based project specific operating and capital cost estimates using a team of industry recognised specialists / experts. Oreall has concluded and states that Kun-Manie is ready for industrial development.
AMC notes that reserves reported herein are in accordance with Russian reserve reporting standards as JORC standards are not utilised in the definition or classification of mineralisation in the Russian Federation. There are three Russian categories identified as B, C1 and C2. Those that are within an open pit or mined as ore from underground openings are reported as in-balance reserves whilst those not mined or below cutoff grade are off-balance reserves. Per the Committee for Mineral Reserves – International Reporting Standards (“CRIRSCO”), Russian and western resources / reserves are correlative. Russian B reserves equate to Proved when within a pit with Russian C1 approximating Probable Mineral Reserves.
Summary:
· Based on Oreall’s independent calculation of operating costs, metallurgical recoveries of metals (economically dominated by nickel and copper) into two saleable battery precursor concentrate products, the nickel cutoff grade is calculated to be 0.3% nickel only. Revenue is based on a presently conservative nickel price of US$ 13,300/t (US$ 6.00/lb – US$ 8.40/lb today) and a copper price of US$5,960/t (US$2.70/lb – US$ 3.98/lb today). Metal recoveries are anticipated to be 73.5% for nickel and 52.3% for copper.
· For now, production will be completed using open pit mining methods only. A minimum mining thickness of five meters has been utilised, intercalated waste of up to five meters is included and pit slope analyses have identified numerous mine slope angles based on pit wall location, dip direction and rock type. Pit slopes will vary from 37o to 55o. Mining losses are projected to be 2.6% with dilution of 8.8%.
· In-balance B + C1 + C2 totals 150.0 million ore tonnes averaging 0.77% nickel (1.15 million tonnes), 0.21% copper (0.32 million tonnes) and 0.015% cobalt (22.7 thousand tonnes). An additional off-balance tonnage ranging from 13.3 million to 14.9 million tonnes (C1 + C2) averaging 0.64% nickel, 0.18% copper and 0.012% cobalt is located external the Lerchs Grossman 0.3% ultimate pit limit boundaries.
· Russian B + C1 reserve inclusive of in-balance and off-balance totals 144.2 million ore tonnes containing 1.10 million nickel tonnes and 304 thousand copper tonnes. In the 30 June 2021 RNS, the RPM Asia JORC Measured and Indicated (CRIRSCO) resource totaled 148.3 million ore tonnes containing 1.11 million nickel tonnes and 310 thousand copper tonnes. Russian and JORC equivalent resources are virtually identical.
· Mine ore production and the nominal mill throughput at six million tonnes per annum indicates a potential mine life in the order of 25 years. Oreall has determined that the reserve base is substantial and suitable to potentially sustain an 11.2 million tonne per year throughput.
· Open pit mining operating costs per ore tonne including waste totals US$ 14.79. All other costs per ore tonne total $33.25 per ore tonne.
· The initial and life of mine sustaining capital costs are projected to be approximately US$ 1.0 billion. Working capital expenditures are projected to be US$ 83 million.
Key portions of the report remain to be translated from Russian. Upon completion of the translation, a comparative analysis of the results generated by Oreall for the TEO and the independently compiled February 2019 Pre-Feasibility Study (“PFS”) will be provided. There are substantial upgrades and modifications to the February 2019 PFS. Many of which are related to metallurgical improvements by the development of a flowsheet allowing for the capture of two concentrate products.
Robin Young, CEO of Amur Minerals, commented:
“Submission of the independently compiled Permanent Conditions TEO in now complete. Going forward, the process will include a series of meetings between our team and the experts of various disciplines representing the GKZ. These are best viewed as negotiations, modifications and updates to the report. There is a calendar to completion of the work which is presently being finalised by the GKZ representative appointed to our Kun-Manie project. We shall revert once the schedule and key decision points are established.”
Comments on bulletin board speculation of funding
We note that there has been speculation on the internet regarding the inclusion of the Kun-Manie nickel copper project as a priority mining investment project for the Amur Region within the Plan for Social Development of Economic Growth Centre in the Amur Region, approved by the order of the Government of the Amur Region (as amended 1 July 2021). This is only an amendment to older documents and approvals. Kun-Manie was approved and listed in 2015. This confusion occurs intermittently and is most often resurfaces when Amur Oblast updates budgets and schedules expenditures which includes already listed priority projects.
We recommend that shareholders and those that are interested follow the various links that have been provided on the bulletin boards, fully read and digest the substantial information contained therein, especially as to how a project becomes a priority project and what is needed to obtain funding. Note, being on the list does not mean new funding has been provided, a company has access to funding. The Company works closely with a large number of agencies in Russia to secure funding for Kun-Manie and will announce any funding that is secured.
