Ormonde Mining plc (LON:ORM)’s revised construction schedule for the Barruecopardo tungsten project in Spain now calls for plant commissioning to begin in the third quarter of 2018.
This follows the rescheduling of certain construction contracts such that they now run consecutively instead of concurrently, and also follows on from the completion of the necessary land acquisitions.
The company expects first production now to occur into a stronger tungsten market, following the exhaustion of greater than formerly suspected supply of the intermediary product ammonium paratungstate (APT).
The largest Western tungsten mine closed in 2015.
Overall, during fiscal 2016 Ormonde lost €2.41 mln, compared with a profit of €2.07 mln for 2015.
Although Ormonde did make a small operating profit for the year, a €2 mln impairment charge on the La Zarza polymetallic asset asset and the share of loss in the Barruecopardo joint venture vehicle resulted in the reported loss for the period.