Amur Minerals (LON:AMC) has received approval for its project plan for the Kun-Manie nickel deposit, another key step towards developing the huge resource in Far East Russia.
Under the terms of its recently awarded mining permit, Amur had to get approval for the plan before the end of 2015 and it can now re-start drilling to build up the resource further.
An initial 6,000 metre (m) programme this summer will focus on converting 20mln tonnes of inferred resources into the indicated category in the Flangovy area of Kun-Manie.
Metallurgical samples for both Flangovy and Kubuk are being prepared in our Khabarovsk, Russia core storage facility, Amur added.
Robin Young, Amur’s chief executive, said: “We are ready to move on to the next phase of site evaluation by infill drilling and initiation of the metallurgical test work that will guide us in selecting the specific process design for Kun-Manie.
“This next phase of project de-risking and assessment will provide an increase in the reserve base necessary to undertake the production decision."
Amur’s value has doubled to around £130mln since it was awarded its mining permit in May and the company is now one of the best performing shares on AIM over the past five years.