Savannah Resources Plc (LON:SAV) expects the prices of copper and Ilmenite to continue to rise over the coming year and M&A activity in mineral sands also to pick up.
“Copper is a key Energy Metal and will continue to play a crucial role in the fast-evolving global energy matrix,” said David Archer, Savannah’s chief executive.
“Ilmenite prices have made a strong recovery and we are looking for further price increases during 2017. Meanwhile we are seeing increased corporate activity in the mineral sands sector which underscores the increasing appeal of the sector to investors.”
Savannah has a minerals sands joint venture with Rio Tinto, Mutamba, in Mozambique, a number of copper deposits in Oman and early stage lithium deposits in Finland.
At Mutamba, a pilot plant is due to be commissioned mid-year so that a proof of concept bulk sampling programme can be undertaken, while the using dry mining and phased development may see mining operations in the near term, said Archer.
In Oman, Block 5 is Savannah’s main focus for an initial mine development with licence applications for the Mahab 4 and Maqail South deposits to start operations in late 2017.
Ahead of this, work will be undertaken to determine the best processing route and finalise feasibility studies. Recent metallurgical work indicated a saleable copper concentrate with recoveries of over 90% can be produced from a relatively simple float process.
These two projects will be the focus said Archer, though early stage exploration work will continue in Finland.
Results for 2016 showed a loss of £1.76mln as Savannah continued to spend on development work. The company has just raised £2.24mln with a possible further £1mln to come.