May 23 2013
EMED Mining, the Europe-based minerals development and exploration company, reports further progress towards the commencement of permitted preliminary site works in Q3-2013, commissioning production at the first planned mine in mid-2014 and ramping up its production over the subsequent 18 months.
Of particular note from a regulatory viewpoint is the satisfactory settlement of conditions which determine refinements to the TMF, so that the AAU and AS can now be finalised as precursors to the major site works.
Highlights
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Production commissioning from the first mine remains scheduled to start mid-2014, and the ramp up of its production remains scheduled for the following 18 months;
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The Environmental Plan (“AAU”) to have the same conditions with regards to the tailings management facility (“TMF”) as set last month by the Department of Industry for Administrative Standing (“AS”);
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The Company has completed the design work to satisfy these TMF conditions, after reviews with the regulators and CEDEX, the government’s independent expert.
Background
The two principal regulatory authorities, the Andalucian Government’s Departments of Industry and Environment have both now formally written to confirm their requirements for finalising AS and AAU respectively; essentially, that the two sets of documents reflect the conditions for AS as summarised in the Company’s announcement dated 15 April 2013. As previously reported, these conditions were set by the Department of Industry to refine the TMF to reflect the following design parameters:
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restricting the existing dam wall to the previously permitted height;
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the future transition to high density tailings to reduce water on the tailings deposit;
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the progressive sealing of the surface of the tailings deposit during operations; and
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ensuring sufficient holding capacity to support initial base case production plans.
All these refinements have been satisfactorily dealt with and settled by the Company and its advisers for civil engineering, tailings handling, hydrology and restoration, after discussion with the regulators and the Government’s independent technical review agency CEDEX. This followed the drilling and other due diligence programs completed in March 2013, having been implemented after the Company’s acquisition on 28 August 2012 of the two thirds of the TMF previously owned by third parties.
The project timetable has been refined to preserve the plan to start commissioning production in mid-2014. The formalisation of the AAU and AS are now on a revised path for completion around the end of Q3-2013, having taken into account the TMF conditions set last month. Some site housekeeping along with starting personnel training is scheduled for Q3-2013.
Harry Anagnostaras-Adams, Managing Director and CEO of EMED Mining, commented:
“We are immensely pleased that the Government has, through its actions, reiterated its policy commitment to the restart. The Andalucian Government’s two regulatory authorities which issue the key permits required for construction have now confirmed the same conditions will be applied to the tailings management facility, to serve both their environmental and economic agendas in a complementary and integrated manner.
“Environmentally, the conditions make the plan safer, allow progressive environmental restoration during operations and avoid the premature disturbance of more land. Economically, the conditions preserve the base case for production and, in due course, will also serve expansion scenarios after the refinements have been optimised in the field during operations.
“The Company and the authorities will continue to adjust the timetable for permitting and start-up activities to ensure site activities escalate in a prudent sequential manner that is in line with regulatory permitting and to start commissioning production in mid-2014.”