New Century Resources Ltd (ASX:NCZ) has delivered an ore reserve containing 246,000 tonnes of copper and 198,000 ounces of gold at the Mt Lyell Copper Mine in Tasmania, demonstrating the scale of opportunity and re-establishing Mt Lyell among Australia’s top copper mines.
The historical mine, which entered care and maintenance in 2014, has been reinvigorated with an ore reserve (Prince Lyell & Western Tharsis Underground) of 23.9 million tonnes at 1.14% copper equivalent (copper 1.03%, gold 0.26g/t) for 246,000 tonnes copper and 198,000 ounces gold.
Mt Lyell initial ore reserve (June 2022).
New Century managing director Patrick Walta said: “Mt Lyell is shaping up as one of the largest near-term copper production assets on the ASX, aided by the extensive infrastructure in place and a proven production history of high quality, low-carbon copper, utilising low-cost renewable energy from hydroelectric power.
“New Century’s restart development work to date has delivered an initial Ore Reserve at Mt Lyell significantly larger than anticipated, with a mine life projected out greater than 10 years on this Ore Reserve alone.”
Only a small portion of the project’s overall potential
New Century has completed the ore reserve pre-feasibility study (PFS) focused on the current underground measured and indicated resource at Mt Lyell within the Prince Lyell and Western Tharsis ore bodies.
The initial ore reserve forms part of the multi-decade Life of Asset (LoA) plan which already has a mine life of more than 10 years at a nominal production rate of 2.4 million tonnes per annum (equivalent to historical mining operations).
It is worth noting that the initial ore reserve represents only ~18% of all resources currently delineated at Mt Lyell.
The total current Mt Lyell resources (all deposits, includes ore reserve), include:
- Underground: 71.3 million tonnes at 1.14% copper equivalent for 734,000 tonnes copper and 588,000 ounces gold
- Open Pit: 69.1 million tonnes at 0.71% copper equivalent for 442,000 tonnes copper and 367,000 ounces gold
Long section showing the indicative mineral resource (red) and ore reserve (green) areas at the Mt Lyell Copper Mine.
Using the initial ore reserve only, the mine plan has an estimated net present value (NPV) range of A$280 million to A$410 million, which clearly demonstrates its economic viability while representing only a small portion of the project’s overall potential.
Restart PFS
A restart pre-feasibility study (Restart PFS) over Mt Lyell is underway and expected to be finalised in H2 2022.
The Restart PFS will consider all available mineral inventory and is therefore expected to deliver enhanced project economics.
New Century is assessing the known underground resources at the Prince Lyell, Western Tharsis and potentially other known ore bodies at Mt Lyell for inclusion in the LoA plan.
Drilling works are also underway with the aim of increasing the resource confidence level in the initial mining areas and for further conversion to ore reserves.
Top Australian copper mines by ore reserve and grade.
Redesign and optimisation of the working sub-levels of Prince Lyell and Western Tharsis are being undertaken, utilising the extensive geotechnical knowledge generated from recent operational history and the updated cut-off grade derived from New Century’s recently completed Hill of Value Study.
Cave flow modelling is also being conducted to better understand and optimise the mixing of blasted material with remnant mineralised material within the cave.
It is expected that this work will allow the inclusion of a dilution grade in the cave material that reports in the mine plan, which has been conservatively modelled as having no metal content for the purpose of the ore reserve.
Prince Lyell & Western Tharsis deposits, which are the focus of restart activities at Mt Lyell, including initial ore reserve mine plan.
Walta added: “Material upside is clearly evident within the substantial Prince Lyell and Western Tharsis ore bodies, with drilling to occur during 2022 to realise this upside in Ore Reserve growth.
“The company is well positioned to bring Mt Lyell through the Restart PFS process and ultimately into production, supplying green copper into a market projected to be in significant supply deficit within the next three to five years.”