Zircon

This week managing director of Iluka David Robb painted an improved picture of the zircon market, with a higher level of customer inquiry and a pick-up in orders in all markets, except Europe.

Robb said indications are that zircon prices may have stabilised, which if sustained, would underpin volume recovery and represents a pre-condition for potential price increases.

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--Adds broker comments--

EMED Mining (LON:EMED, TSE:EMD) told investors that the proposed restart of the Rio Tinto mine is still on track.

It said that production commissioning from the first mine is scheduled to start in mid-2014, and the operation will ramp up for a further 18 months after that.

The company also confirmed that the pending environmental sign off, in respect of the tailings management facilities, will be subject to the same conditions set out for the ‘administrative standing’ last month by the department of industry.

EMED said it has completed the design work to satisfy those conditions, following reviews with the regulators and the government’s independent experts.

The two key sign offs are now on a ‘revised path’, the company said, and they are expected before the end of the third quarter.

According to City broker SP Angel, Thursday’s statement suggests EMED has now met the final conditions to ensure base-line production.

“While this news is positive to the extent that the tailings conditions have been met there will be disappointment that the time line for permitting has slipped,” the broker, which rates EMED as a ‘buy’, said in a note.

In the meantime, EMED plans to carry out site ‘housekeeping’, including personnel training, starting in the third quarter.

"We are immensely pleased that the government has, through its actions, reiterated its policy commitment to the restart,” said managing director Harry Anagnostaras-Adams.

“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."

On AIM, EMED shares were down 15% on Thursday changing hands at 6.88p.

EMED Mining (LON:EMED, TSE:EMD) is still confident it can start work in Spain next quarter after three months that have been dominated by talk of permitting.

Harry Anagnostaras Adams, EMED’s Managing Director, hopes to begin operations at the Rio Tinto mine in the second quarter.

“Obviously this relies on receiving the requisite permits, the progress of which remains encouraging and steady, albeit slow due to the caution and care being exercised,” he said.

Last month, he told investors EMED was at a “very delicate and exciting stage”, with every effort being made to “expedite the triggering of the project”.

EMED announced that its economic, technical and legal capacities were approved by the regional government, and that it had been formally advised by the Andalucian Department of Industry that the critical Administrative Standing status will also be granted upon independent approval of its tailings dam and the final environmental sign-off.

Subsequently, in a separate announcement, it revealed that it was set to start feasibility work for a possible project to recover gold and silver from tailings material at Rio Tinto.

It comes after the regional authorities concluded a public comment period relating to the recognition of Class B resources, or potentially recoverable resources held within waste material.

Last quarter also included the bailout from Cyprus, where the company held some of its cash.

Though controversial plans were announced to take a percentage from savings accounts on the island, the company claims the levy had no notable impact on it.

Shares fell 4.7% to 8.69p each.

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Frontier Mining (LON:FML) has announced that chief financial officer George Cole has resigned following the company’s decision to move its finance department to Almaty, Kazakhstan.

The company has been working to establish full scale production at the Benkala copper mine in Kazakhstan.

Current KazCopper chief financial officer Marzhan Nurumbetova has been appointed as interim CFO.

In a statement, Frontier chief executive Yerlan Aliyev said: “As the company moves into the production stage of its development, the board considers that this initiative to centralise its financial reporting and control function to its head office location will be beneficial to the company. 

“The board of Frontier would like to thank George and Greg for their service to the company and wishes them all the very best for their future endeavours."

Other measures to be taken by the board of Gunson will include:

- reducing Director’s fees by 25% and suspending their payment until circumstances permit reinstatement
and repayment;
- reducing the ongoing remuneration of the managing director and the fees paid to the chief financial
officer and the Coburn project manager, both of whom are contractors; and
- ceasing or limiting to the greatest extent possible any payments to consultants and service providers

Perth-based corporate advisory firm Azure Capital, which carried out the review, endorsed the recommencement of discussions with parties that had previously shown interest in the project.

It added that sector mergers and acquisitions should also be considered.

Coburn project

However, it noted that the project’s dependence on Zircon revenue reduced the universe of potential partners to those focused on zircon, rather than the much larger titanium dioxide industry, where more bankable offtake contracts can be negotiated.

This is aided by a recent research report by JP Morgan showing that the Coburn Project is currently the only unfinanced zircon development project in the world lying below the estimated $US1,807 per tonne average inducement price.

The only other project is World Titanium Resources’ (ASX: WTR) Toliara project in Madagascar, which is under a joint venture offer from major Chinese titanium dioxide pigment producer Sichuan Lomon Titanium.

Mount Gunson project

Due to the short time available, the review did not address the company’s other projects though Gunson noted that interest in the small 100% owned MG14 and Windabout copper-cobalt deposits at Mount Gunson has increased significantly in the past several weeks.

Gunson said the newly completed Strategic Review has provided the company with a plan and new corporate structure to realise the greatest possible value for shareholders.

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Cadillac Ventures (CVE:CDC) announced Thursday the discovery of polymetallic veining consisting of silver and copper at its Burnt Hill property in New Brunswick - the first such discovery at the property to the company's knowledge. 

Last Fall, the company told investors today that the surface prospecting and exploration part of its program led to the finding of polymetallic mineralization at the new "Big Bad Wolf" and "Q60 Hill" showings. 

"The discovery of a polymetallic phase of mineralization at Burnt Hill suggests a more complex mineralization, with parallels to the mineral systems found in Cornwall, which exhibit similar setting and age relationships," said the company in its release on Thursday. 

At the Big Bad Wolf discovery, quartz bedrock fragments over a 20 metre section were observed to contain polymetallic mineralization, with veins seen to be up to 50 centimetres thick. Though samples in the field did not visually indicate silver or copper, examination with a handheld XRF analysis tool saw values that prompted lab testing, results of which included 33.3 grams per tonne (g/t) silver in one sample and 0.24% copper in another sample. Tungsten and tin values were also present, Cadillac said. 

The company plans to restart work in the area shortly to continue investigating the polymetallic discovery, after heavy snow prevented sampling of other trenches that were dug. The work will consist of the clean out and sampling of the existing trenches, as well as excavation of any additional trenches required for drill targets. 

Meanwhile, at the Q60 Hill discovery, an area that was previously prospect but unnamed until now and sits just one kilometre north of Big Bad Wolf, one bedrock sample in particular returned "high silver" vales the company said, believing that the source of the sample is likely local. During the upcoming program, thearea will be systematically prospected and trenched, it added. 

The Burnt Hill property stretches 11,000 hectares and although historical prospecting activity was carried out during the 1970s, work largely focused on the Burnt Hill mine site, and did not include exploration for silver. 

Last year, when Cadillac decided to refocus on its Burnt Hill project, the company investigated independent sites along the Burnt Hill intrusive. All of the sites considered showed occurrences of tin and or tungsten mineralization, the junior explorer said, and therefore warrant further investigation.

The company is working to update the resource model at the deposit, with results from 16 recent drill holes not previously included in the existing NI 43-101 report. 

The historic tungsten/tin mine was actually taken to test production by Cadillac's CEO Norman Brewster for Canadian International Paper during the early 1980s. 

The Canadian junior mining company is in the midst of closing a $1.2 million private placement financing with Sino-Canada Natural Resources Fund I, with the funds to be used for exploration expenses at Burnt Hill. 

Copper and gold miner Rambler Metals and Mining (LON:RMM CVE:RAB) has paid back C$0.5mln of its loan with Sprott Resource Lending and will step up the rate of further repayments.

The Canada-based group said the aim is to pay the facility off entirely by the end of the 2013 through a more aggressive repayment schedule.

Norman Williams, Rambler’s chief financial officer, added: "This payment demonstrates Rambler's commitment to paying off its debts.

“With the winter season now behind us, we are beginning to see increases in the amount of high grade copper concentrate produced from the operation.

“With further incremental operational improvements we are optimistic that more free cash flow can be generated, allowing us to be more aggressive with our debt repayment schedule."

The payment of C$500,000, made yesterday, reduces the outstanding facility with Sprott to C$6.5 mln.

Rambler started production from its Ming mine last year and recently posted a maiden profit.

Metminco's (LON:MNC, ASX:MNC) cash reserves of US$15mln at the end of the March quarter allow it to consider options to develop the Los Calaotos copper project in Peru.

"The Los Calatos project is suitably advanced to consider alternatives for project financing and development, including the introduction of a potential strategic partner," managing director William Howe told investors.

A scoping study in the period showed the project should yield 656mln tonnes of copper at 0.45% copper and 0.026% molybdenum, or 0.56% copper equivalent.

Annually it would be expected to produce 83,300 tonnes of copper in concentrate.

Cash costs of the operation are expected to be in the lowest quartile of producers at US$1.09 per pound, while pre-production capital expenditure is put at around US$1.5bn.

Howe said the study confirmed the potential of the project as a low cost, long-life, copper mine with significant leverage to the copper price.

"The mining scenario involves the development of an initial open pit operation with a life of 7-years, followed by a substantial underground block cave operation with a life of 24-years.

"However, the opportunity exists to optimise the mine plan further, and in particular increase those mineral resources amenable to open pit mining.

"This would not only increase the open pit mine life, but would delay the timing of the planned underground mine development, and hence reduce the initial capital expenditure," he said.

Broker Canaccord reiterated its ‘speculative buy’ call on the stock and 23 pence a share price target – which gives it multi-bagger potential compared with the current price of 1.7 pence.

“The main catalyst for the shares will be the successful conclusion to find a partner for the flagship Los Calatos process,” said analyst Peter Mallin-Jones in note to clients.

“This process is underway at present and its successful conclusion will give both credibility and a valuation point to the project and Metminco shares in our view.”

The aim is to trial mine / bulk sample 10,000 tonnes of material to demonstrate grade, processing and recovery, mining methods, and dilution management.

A scalable 15tph modular gravity gold plant will be installed, multi-pass optimised for coarse and fine free gold targeting >90% recovery.  Plant purchase is budgeting $2 million + $1 million installation costs.

This trial mining is stage one of a multi-stage approach to development at Old Pirate.

Long lead time items for fine gold recovery (Knelson Concentrator) have been ordered from Consep Pty Ltd and engineering of support structures is progressing.

AMTAS Pty Ltd in Perth has begun work on components for coarse gold recovery (scrubber and jig).

The crushing circuit and ball mill have been secured via Index Pty Ltd in Brisbane and are being refurbished.

Analysis

The discovery of further high grade zones within trucking distance of the Old Pirate plant offers further open pit potential that could extend both the resource and mine life at the project.

Setting ABM apart from many of its gold company peers, the Old Pirate trial mining due to commence in June/July 2013 will generate cash flow almost immediately and is designed to pay for itself.  The Pilot Plant is a low-cost entry into mine development and processing.

ABM is targeting 10g/t recovered grade for >3000 ounces of gold in the Old Pirate trial mining which will provide valuable data and is equivalent of a Feasibility Study.

The first stage trial at Old Pirate will progressively de-risk the project and be a forerunner for a larger stage 2 and stage 3 production.   Proactive Investors estimates a near term price target of $0.05-$0.06 for ABM.

ABM is well capitalised to achieve its milestones in 2013 with $14.1 million in cash at the end of the December quarter 2012.

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Weatherly has already completed a bankable feasibility study for Tschudi, which will add 17,000 tonnes additional production per year and take output overall up to 25,000 Mtpa.

The company submitted amendments to its environmental application in February and an external consultant, in conjunction with the Ministry, completed the required review.

Rod Webster, chief executive, said: "Weatherly is making significant progress towards becoming a mid-tier copper producing company and the Tschudi environmental clearance is another important milestone.

“I would like to commend the Ministry of Tourism and the Environment for the prompt and efficient way in which the submission has been processed which demonstrates the importance of the project to Namibia.”  

Weatherly said last week it was finalising the finding of the project, which should be the last hurdle for the project to get the go-ahead.

Financier Red Kite has largely completed its due diligence at Tschudi, Weatherly said on 17 April, and the miner has been offered a revised term sheet that it has accepted in principle.

Loan documentation will be subject to an additional review of the company's operations, Weatherly added at that time.

Funds from the placing will be used to accelerate the programme of re-opening the Namib lead-zinc mine in Namibia.

Specifically, the proceeds will be used to fund the structural geology review currently underway by CSA Global, underground and surface drilling, and for general working capital purposes.

Among the investors acquiring the newly issued shares were North River directors Martin French and Brett Richards, who subscribed for 64.9mln and 14.3mln shares, respectively; Dominic Claridge, who is project manager at the Namib mine, subscribed for 2.9mln shares.

Following completion of the share placing, French will have an 8.2% stake in the company, Richards will hold 1.45% and Claridge’s stake will rise to 0.3%.

Martin French, executive director of North River, commented: "We are pleased to have completed this placing in the most difficult of market conditions for junior mining companies. We believe this is a testament to our strong operational plan and the excellent value represented by our shares at this level."

Copper miner Frontier Mining’s (LON:FML) new financing arrangement is a positive for the company, according to RFC Ambrian. 

The miner today confirmed it has received final approval for US$17.9mln of additional funds from Russian bank Sberbank.

The Kazakhstan-based miner had already received local approval for the money, but it has now been signed off by Sberbank’s head office in Moscow. The signed agreement, which is with subsidiary KazCopper, consists of a loan and credit facility.

The new facility is for five years and comprises a US$6mln increase in the capital investment loan at an interest rate of 9% and a US$11.9mln increase in the working capital credit facility at an interest rate of 8.5%.

The money will fund expansion at the Benkala SX-EW plant, Frontier said, and brings the total amount of existing Sberbank facilities to US$52.9mln.

Frontier Mining’s new debt facility is a highly positive development that reduces the finance risk perceived by the market, RFC Ambrian said today.

The broker estimates total debt currently sits at between US$60-64mln, with a further US$17.9mln available to be drawn down from this new facility and US$16mln from the existing Sberbank facility.

Interest cover is 3.9 times and gearing is 61%, both are within acceptable limits, adds the broker.

RFC Ambrian added that the size of the facility was enough to ensure the expansion to 10,000tpa of copper can be achieved, while the additional US$11.9mln working capital facility will resolve any potential cashflow shortfalls for 2013.

The only key debt restructuring outstanding is for the US$10mln loan with Red Kite, where the new Sberbank debt facility will strengthen Frontier’s position to negotiate the terms. 

In 2013, Frontier said it will continue to work on the expansion of the Benkala site to 10,000 tonnes per annum capacity, with US$6mln to be spent on additional leach pads, improvements to the crushing and agglomeration process and general site enhancements.

Frontier added production should also restart quickly from its Benkala operation in Kazakhstan, with a cathode shipment anticipated for the first week of June.

RFC Ambrian added it still awaits further details of winter heap leach trials as well as results from other heap leach optimisation studies undertaken. 

The broker retained its buy stance and 5.5p price target.

It said catalysts for the next 12 months include: winter heap leach trial & production results due first half 2013; a maiden JORC resource for South Benkala due first half 2013 and an expanded oxide resource base for Benkala also due this first half.

Agglomerated ore had been loaded onto pads before December to facilitate an immediate start-up, without the need for crushing stockpiled ore, or depending on activity resuming at the mine.

Cathode production will also continue alongside the SX-EW plant expansion, Frontier said.

The miner today confirmed it has received final approval for US$17.9mln of additional funds from Russian bank Sberbank.

The Kazakhstan-based miner had already received local approval for the money, but it has now been signed off by Sberbank’s head office in Moscow. The signed agreement, which is with subsidiary KazCopper, consists of a loan and credit facility.

The new facility is for five years and comprises a US$6mln increase in the capital investment loan at an interest rate of 9% and a US$11.9mln increase in the working capital credit facility at an interest rate of 8.5%.

The money will fund expansion at the Benkala SX-EW plant, Frontier said, and brings the total amount of existing Sberbank facilities to US$52.9mln.

In 2013, Frontier said it will continue to work on the expansion of the Benkala site to 10,000 tonnes per annum capacity, with US$6mln to be spent on additional leach pads, improvements to the crushing and agglomeration process and general site enhancements.

Yerlan Aliyev, chairman and chief executive, said, "We are keen to resume operations at Benkala with all haste. Continued development of the site offers considerable benefits to both the company and our shareholders, and I am in no doubt that is a prudent investment."

Benkala is an open pit copper mine and SX-EW production facility located on the Urals copper gold ore belt in North West Kazakhstan.

Following a pilot test period in late 2012 and suspension of operations during winter months, production is due to recommence in the second quarter of 2013 at the planned fully operational capacity rate of 7,000 tonnes Cu per annum.

The company will undertake further exploration of IOCG style targets on the four projects in the Cloncurry area, with up to 10 key targets to be tested this year.

The projects are located in the Eastern Succession of the Mount Isa Inlier, which is host to a number of large copper-gold deposits – of which Xstrata’s 219 million tonne at 1.1% copper and 0.51 grams per tonne (g/t) gold Ernest Henry mine is the largest to date.

Large areas of this terrain are covered and remain largely unexplored.

Key targets for drilling include FC4S, adjacent to Xstrata’s Ernest Henry copper-gold mine, FC4S(E) and Bronzewing Bore.

Previous drilling at the FC4S target intersected copper mineralisation and ‘red-rock’ alteration. Geophysical modelling suggests this intersection is on the periphery of a strong magnetic feature.

Meanwhile, deep penetrating MT geophysics at the FC4S(E) target has identified three strong conductivity targets below the surficial cover.

Initial drilling at Bronzewing Bore resulted in the discovery of IOCG style copper mineralisation over an interval of 219 metres down-hole averaging 842 parts per million copper.

Subsequent geophysical surveys and modelling defined a compelling target for further drill testing.

A number of other targets will be subject to geophysical and geochemical surveys.


Farm-in history

This is the fourth year of a six year farm-in under which Pan Pacific and Mitsui , through their Australian subsidiary Cloncurry Exploration & Development, can earn a 51% interest in the projects by spending $15 million on exploration.

Projects subject to this agreement include the Talawanta-Grassy Bore, Bungalien and Mount Margaret West projects. GBM remains the operator of the projects.

GBM and Cloncurry Exploration & Development’s exploration is focused on the discovery of world-class gold and copper-gold deposits in these project areas.

Under the farm-in agreement Pan Pacific and Mitsui can outlay up to $55 million.


Analysis

Pan Pacific Copper Co. and Mitsui’s commitment to a $2.5 million exploration budget provides GBM with funding certainty during 2013-14 as it works to prove up a potential world-class gold or copper-gold deposit in northwest Queensland.

Three years of field exploration and scout drilling have increased the potential for a commercial discovery, the funding from PPC and Mitsui will assist the goal.

PPC and Mitsui can outlay up to A$55 million through their Australian registered JV company CED under the farm-in agreement.

GBM had around $1.5 million in cash reserves at the end of December 2012.

With drilling commencing during May, this will provide strong newsflow for GBM.


Proactive Investors Australia is the market leader in producing news, articles and research reports on ASX “Small and Mid-cap” stocks with distribution in Australia, UK, North America and Hong Kong / China.

Cadillac Ventures (CVE:CDC) updated investors late Monday with regards to the expected closing of its $1.2 million private placement financing with Sino-Canada Natural Resources Fund I announced last Month. 

The company said Sino-Canada has entered into an "irrevocable" subscription agreement to acquire 20 million units of the company at a price of 6 cents per unit. Each unit consists of one common share of Cadillac, and one share purchase warrant, exerciseable for 30 months following closing for an additional share at a price of 10 cents. 

Sino-Canada has advanced the full $1.2 million subscription amount, Cadillac said in the release Monday, and such funds are being held in escrow by McMillan LLP pending formal closing of the offering, which has been delayed pending clearance by the TSX Venture Exchange. 

The clearance is with regards to personal information forms of Sino-Canada, which were submitted to the exchange at the beginning of April. Cadillac says it has been advised that the okay of the forms will likely take "a few more weeks". 

The go-ahead is required because on closing, Sino-Canada will become an insider of Cadillac through its 12.1 per cent stake in the company, or around 21.7 per cent assuming full exercise of warrants. 

Cadillac says it plans to use the new funds from the private placement for expenses on its Canadian exploration properties and for general working capital purposes.

Late last month, the junior explorer said it expanded mineralization at its Burnt Hill mine project in central NewBrunswick, after revealing results from its recent drilling program. The drilling, the company said, occurred outside areas of known mineralization, with each of the five holes intersecting mineralization and expanding the area of the mine site. 

Several notable silver values were also found, whereas prior drill programs at the project concentrated just on tungsten, tin and molybdenum. Cadillac said silver has not been tested since the company's first drill campaign at Burnt Hill in 2007. 

Last year, the company decided to refocus on the Burnt Hill project, in which it holds a 51 per cent interest. The historic tungsten/tin mine was taken to test production by Cadillac's CEO Norman Brewster for Canadian International Paper during the early 1980s. Cadillac is now aiming to restart development at the project.

Cadillac also recently said it started an internal review of its Kirkland Lake Gold property after some encouraging data. The asset, which Cadillac acquired as part of its purchase of Richview Resources in January 2010, is located west of the town of Kirkland Lake, Ontario, within four kilometres of the producing Macassa mine. 

It also stands to benefit from its nickel and copper Thierry project in northwestern Ontario, which consists of the past producing Thierry Mine and hosts two NI 43-101 compliant resources at the Thierry Mine and the K1-1 deposit.

Weatherly International (LON:WTI) is close to finalising the funding of its new copper project at Tschudi in Namibia.

Financier Red Kite has largely completed its due diligence at Tschudi, Weatherly said, and the miner has been offered a revised term sheet that it has accepted in principle.

Loan documentation will be subject to an additional review of the company's operations, Weatherly added.

Engineering and design work at Tschudi has also largely been completed, contracts with the four main consultants/contractors are being negotiated and environmental amendments filed, it said.

When in operation Tschudi will add 17,000 tonnes to output annual and more than treble the group’s production.

Output from the two existing mines – Matchless and Ojihatsi - was below expectations in the latest three months and Weatherly said it was implementing a number of changes to reduce costs at the operations.

Total production was 4,948 tonnes (previous quarter: 5,780 tonnes) of copper concentrate. Production of contained copper was 1,142 tonnes (1,328 tonnes). Ore treated fell to 67,833 tonnes from 79,330.

Both mines were affected by one-off incidents, said the company.

A significant ground subsidence occurred in the upper levels of the Otjihase compartment, while a death at Matchless meant a temporary shutdown as an electrical audit had to be carried out.

A new contractor has been appointed to Otjihase and while the restructuring of the operations are bedding down production from the existing mines will be about 5,000 tonnes of copper per annum.

The disruption to its mining operation pushed cash costs up to US$7,344 (US$3.33/lb).

During the quarter, Weatherly delivered 1,226 tonnes of copper in concentrate to metal trader Louis Dreyfus at a weighted average price of US$7,743 /t (US$3.51 /lb) copper.

Cash at the end of March was US$7.2mln.

Rod Webster, chief executive, said: “Weatherly is making significant strides towards becoming a mid-tier copper producing company by the end of 2014.

“The Tschudi Project is progressing and we are currently working with Red Kite to finalise the outstanding requirements for the loan.”

Broker Investec reflected on a tough quarter for Weatherly. It reckons once investors get more clues about the financing, the shares could react positively.

“Longer term value should be driven from Tschudi so updates on final financing and development should provide direction to the company’s share price,” the broker said.

Shares fell 0.79p to 3.09p each.

"We are poised at a very delicate and exciting stage, working very closely with the authorities in Andalucía and making every effort to expedite the triggering of the project, to start works in the second half of 2013 and ramp-up base production by the end of 2015,” Adams said.

"As announced earlier this week, the company is now one step closer to restarting operations and is fully focused on ensuring that all permitting is in place as soon as possible.

“Confirmation from the Andalucian Department of Industry that we have satisfied the legal, technical and economic criteria for Administrative Standing of the company's mineral rights is another step in the right direction as is the formal confirmation of the remaining steps.

"Preparations of the project and its financing are progressed in parallel with permitting."

EMED is targeting a copper production rate of 37,000 tonnes in concentrate per year by the end of 2015 based on first production in 2014 and starting construction later this year.

Earlier this week, EMED announced that its economic, technical and legal capacities have been approved by the regional government, and that it had been formally advised by the Andalucian Department of Industry that the critical Administrative Standing status will also be granted upon independent approval of its tailings dam and the final environmental sign-off.

Subsequently, in a separate announcement, it revealed that it is set to start feasibility work for a possible project to recover gold and silver from tailings material at the Rio Tinto mine in Andalucia region of Spain.

This comes after the regional authorities concluded a public comment period relating to the recognition of Class B resources, or potentially recoverable resources held within waste material.

Rambler Metals and Mining (LON:RMM, CVE:RAB) has expanded its footprint in the Baie Verte area of Newfoundland -  acquiring the rights to explore and develop a gold/copper property.

Krissy's Buckle lies around 5 kilometres (km) south of the firm's Ming mine and within 40km of its Nugget Pond processing facility, encompassing 2,300 hectares.

Rambler says a key target will be the Krissy trend, where a hole returned 10.51 g/t (grams per tonne) gold over 1.75 metres, including 0.5m at 31.9 g/t golf and 2.84% copper.

The area contains two mining leases and numerous copper and gold mineralised zones and anomalies including Krissy, SB and the Brass Buckle trends.

Rambler can begin exploring and compiling historical data immediately.

The miners chief executive and president, George Ogilvie said: "We believe that the Baie Verte area has significant mineral exploration potential and with the Ming copper-gold mine in commercial production, and generating free cash flow, now is the right time to acquire other properties within close proximity to our existing operating mill.

"This is the first property arrangement we have completed since reaching commercial production in November 2012, and hopefully it will not be our last as we are currently in negotiations on a number of other exciting prospects."

Broker Ocean Equities noted that Rambler is "uniquely placed" to take advantage of the abundant high grade mineralisation in an area, which is perhaps one of the last where such near-surface base and precious metals deposits can be found.

The firm has integrated mine-concentrator-port facilities and it is "great to see the firm capitalising on its position", said Ocean analyst Christopher Welch.

The analyst notes that Rambler is currently examining upgrading its gold recovery unit to improve gold recovery rates

"Should the company define a sufficiently large additional gold resource it could potentially also justify installation of additional milling capacity to make it a much larger gold and copper producer," says Welch.

The property deal is between the company and three land holders: Peter Dimmell, Krinor Resources Inc and Northeast Exploration Services.

Rambler has the exclusive right to explore and develop the property while providing the vendors with a 2% net smelter royalty (NSR) on any ore extracted.

In addition, advanced royalty payments totalling C$90,000 will be paid to the sellers over the first four years, Rambler told investors.

Last month saw the company report that it had moved into the black for the first time in its second quarter.

In the three months to January 31, 2013, the group logged a pre-tax profit of C$1.93mln, compared to a loss in the corresponding quarter of last year of C$1.04mln.

Rambler shares today were unchanged at 26.75p.

This comes after the regional authorities concluded a public comment period relating to the recognition of Class B resources, or potentially recoverable resources held within waste material.

The process yielded only one negative comment which, according to EMED, raised nothing of a material nature that had not already been taken into account in the company’s plans.

"The tailings recycling joint venture is an important project not only for its potential economic value but also because it can play an important role in the environmental management of the tailings deposit and in maximising its holding capacity,” said Harry Anagnostaras-Adams.

 "Whilst our immediate focus is on the restart of the Cerro Colorado open pit, our plan is to extend project life and annual production by targeting to expand the open pit, restart the underground mines, recycle precious metal in the tailings deposit and explore our ancillary tenements."

"The various elements of our plans are now starting to fall into place in a complementary pattern after extensive consultation with the authorities."

The proposed tailings project, known as the Gossan Dam deposit, contains the waste material resulting from past operations which produced over 1.7mln tonnes of copper, 3.4mln ounces of gold and 57mln ounces of silver.

The project is being advanced via a joint venture with a local investment group known as Rumbo 5.Cero.

EMED has also been formally advised by the Andalucian Department of Industry that the critical Administrative Standing status will also be granted upon independent approval of its tailings dam and the final environmental sign-off.

Harry Anagnostaras-Adams, EMED’s managing director and chief executive, said he was very pleased with the confirmations, adding the company is on track to start construction work on the copper project in the third quarter of this year and begin production a year later.

“It has taken a great effort to re-assemble all the lands and infrastructure and to re-engineer the project so that it meets all regulatory requirements.

"Approval of Administrative Standing and the Environmental Plans are prerequisites for commencement of site works and also for finalising the Final Restoration Plan and Mining Permit which are prerequisites for commencement of production in 2014.

"Preparations of the project and its financing are progressing in parallel with permitting."

EMED is targeting a copper production rate of 37,000 tonnes in concentrate per year by the end of 2015 based on first production in 2014 and starting construction later this year.

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The company is also moving its Ojolali gold silver project (75% interest) in the highly prospective Sumatran gold belt into the feasibility stage, following successful completion of leach recovery testing. It has secured extension of exploration permit initially for one year which can be extended for another year.

The company is currently preparing to commission a feasibility study which will initially focus on start-up operations at the Jambi Oxide gold deposit.The Jambi oxide gold deposit has potential for 30-50,000 ounces per annum operation based on a total resource of 176,000 ounces of gold and 1 million ounces of silver.

The company had a cash position of $1.8 million and more recently raised $3.5 million via a placement of 17.5 million shares at 20 cents each to Provident Capital Partners.


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Wadi Al Rawada Investments held the rights to exploit the deposits.

The dispute arose after Burkina Faso refused to recognise Wadi’s rights to Tambao.

"In June 2007, Wadi asked Weatherly to complete a feasibility study regarding the Tambao project," the firm said in a statement.

"Wadi submitted it to Burkina Faso in September 2008. A dispute arose between Wadi and the State of Burkina Faso regarding the rights over the deposit, which was submitted in April 2011 for resolution to an arbitral tribunal constituted under the auspices of the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

"That dispute has now been settled and Wadi has agreed to discontinue the arbitration," Weatherly revealed.

Vedanta had appealed against the Madras High Court order in September 2010 to close the Sterlite copper smelting unit in Tamil Nadu state, and on Wednesday it said that the Supreme Court in India had allowed its appeal and set aside the judgement.

FTSE 100 constituent Vedanta said: "We welcome the judgment given by the Hon'ble Supreme Court.

"We will continue to work in close association with the Government of Tamil Nadu and other regulatory bodies, towards maintaining highest standards of health, safety and environment."

The smelter's doors have been shut since last week following complaints of a gas leak.

On Monday this week, Sterlite - a Vedanta subsidiary -  said the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board had ordered it to be closed.

The firm also announced that The High Court of Bombay at Goa has approved plans to consoidate and simplify the group.

Vedanta shares were up 3.83% to 1,030p in early deals.

Celeste Mining Corp. (CVE:C) has revealed more strong drill results from the underground drilling program at its South Crofty tin project in the U.K., showing wide intercepts of disseminated mineralization in the Dolcoath section. 

The drill program is being carried out by Cornish Minerals, into which Celeste can earn 100 per cent under an earn-in agreement signed in May 2011. 

Last year, Cornish drilled 28 holes as part of a drill program ongoing since 2008, with 145 holes now having been drilled, or a total of 28,000 metres. 

Late Monday, Celeste revealed the results of five holes completed in 2012. Highlights include 9 metres at 0.72% tin equivalent in the South Entral Lode, including 4 metres at 1.35% tin equivalent, and 17.52 metres at 0.42% tin equivalent in the Dolcoath Main Lode, including 2 metres at 0.91% tin equivalent. 

The company said in its statement that it has seen unanticipated delays in obtaining assay results over the past three months, but the backlog is expected to reduce over the next two months. 

The latest holes revealed were drilled to the south of a decline driven to the west of the South Crofty mine, Celeste said, situated between the upper levels of mineralized structures that originally formed part of the Dolcoath mine that was closed in 1922 and separated from the South Crofty mine by a major fault known as the Great Crosscourse. 

"The wide intercepts of disseminated mineralization in the Dolcoath main footwall zone now represent a strike length of some 150m and substantial dip extent," said the company in the release, citing CEO Alan Shoesmith.

Indeed, additional drilling is now taking place some 100 metres west to investigate the strike extent of this zone, and "the higher grade but narrower" South Entral lode, he added.