Jun 17 2020
Nevada Copper Corp. has offered a further update on resuming production at its Pumpkin Hollow underground mine, as well as determining new copper mineralization zones in further expanded land holding.
Restart Preparations and Accelerated Mine Development
Nevada Copper has continued its preparations to restart processing operations that were stopped due to the COVID-19 impact. It has also achieved major progress with its accelerated mine plan announced earlier, which includes the following:
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Vertical Development:
- Completion of the deepening of Main Shaft to the final depth of 2,131 feet has enabled restart of the shaft changeover to production configuration, which is as per schedule
- Fitting of a permanent ore handling system at the Main Shaft headframe is also ongoing as per schedule
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Ongoing Lateral Development Mining:
- Rates of lateral development have been further increase and excavation of key underground infrastructure has been accelerated as a preparation to shift focus toward stope inventory development
- Additional increase in ore stockpile before the restart of the process plant, which was more than 114,000 tons as of May 31st, 2020
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Process Plant:
- Preparations are in progress to restart processing operations targeted in August 2020
- Phased remobilization of plant personnel has started
Nevada Copper’s accelerated development plan is advancing well to achieve the recommencement of concentrate production in third quarter of 2020, which is contingent upon revision based on the COVID-19 pandemic effects and other factors.
Long-Term Mining Contract
At present, Nevada Copper has signed a long-term mining contract with Redpath USA Corporation. Since January 2020, Redpath has been operating at Pumpkin Hollow under the interim services agreement that was signed earlier. With the long-term mining contract signed between Nevada Copper and Redpath, their long-term working relationship is further cemented.
Redpath is a highly proficient mining contractor with experience of delivering complex domestic and international projects successfully.
New Zones of Copper Mineralization and Increased Land Holdings
Recently, Nevada Copper staked a further, highly prospective land package that covers about 680 acres right next to its current Pumpkin Hollow property and along the eastern boundary of the Tedeboy area.
Historical aero-magnetic survey data review has determined a magnetic high coinciding with the anomalous copper mineralization at surface, where grab samples returned copper grades validating the potential of this newly obtained property.
We have made accelerated and marked progress on the Company’s restart schedule and planned underground ramp-up to full scale production. Signing the long-term contract with Redpath is another integral step. Having excellent partners and mobilizing the workforce are key steps towards re-establishing normal operations and achieving full scale production following recent global shutdowns.
Evan Spencer, Chief Executive Officer, Nevada Copper Corp.
Continued Shareholder Support
As revealed earlier, Pala Investments Limited, one of the shareholders, has offered bonding indemnity support to Nevada Copper. Due to the impending COVID-19 pandemic, the insurance industry has experienced a broad-based move by surety providers to seek higher collateral coverage for bonds.
Pala has accepted that it would offer a short-term loan of US$5.5 million to Nevada Copper to cover current and other bonding requirements that could emerge, thereby enabling Nevada Copper to use its cash in a better way to develop and restart its operations.