Finders Resources notes Wetar development financing progress

At its AGM, held earlier today, Finders Resources (AIM, ASX: FND) said the past 6 months have been a very busy period, marked by strong progress towards the company's goal of becoming a highly profitable copper producer. The company told investors that it is currently reviewing draft term sheets for its development financing, and it intends to select a preferred financier over the next few weeks.

The company is currently developing the Wetar copper project in Indonesia, where its demonstration plant has achieved steady-state ‘nameplate’ capacity of 5tpd (tonnes per day) with 598 tonnes of copper being produced between January and April.

Finders also noted that it has adopted a low risk, two-stage expansion strategy, which sees the expansion of the current demonstration plant to 7,000tpa capacity in stage one, and a further increase to 23,000tpa in stage two - with the reconstruction of the 18,000tpa Whim Creek SXEW (solvent extraction and electrowinning) plant at Wetar.

The company said that the outstanding matters required to commence construction – including final mining and import permitting, development finance, and detailed engineering - are all at an advanced stage, as such it is poised for rapid growth in the months ahead.

In respect of the development finance, Finders told investors that a team from Behre Dolbear - an independent expert for a number of interested banking groups - recently completed a site visit, and the company is currently reviewing draft term sheets with a view to selecting a preferred financier for the project over the next few weeks.

In terms of Wetar’s final mine development permits, Finders said it is now in the final stages of preparation, following the approval of the project's environmental development, operational and closure plan (AMDAL) by the Provincial Government  in early April.

Once the permitting and financing is concluded, Finders ‘best projection’ sees Stage 1 expansion taking up to 9 months to complete, with production continuing from the existing demonstration plant throughout the construction phase.

Finders also highlighted the positive pricing trends, “Despite the current uncertainties on world financial markets, the copper price remains strong, with many forecasters predicting ongoing strength”. Furthermore, the company said it has a very robust project at Wetar, as the revenue stream from the existing demonstration plant underpins the company's finances.

Elsewhere, the company is minimising exploration expenditures prior to completion of funding of the Wetar development, however its still maintaining a pipeline of projects for future growth. In Sumatra, at the Ojolali gold-silver project, Finders completed 15 holes of a 40 hole, 4,000m reverse circulation (RC) drilling program targeting additional near surface gold and silver resources.