Monchetundra Update

RNS Number : 6373V

Eurasia Mining PLC

04 December 2019

 

Eurasia Mining plc

("Eurasia" or "the Company")

Monchetundra Update

Eurasia Mining, the palladium, platinum, rhodium, iridium and gold producing company, operating the established West Kytlim Mine in the Urals, and also the operator of the Monchetundra Project, two predominately palladium open pit deposits located 3km away from Severonickel, one of the largest Norilsk Nickel's base metals and PGM processing facility, near the town of Monchegorsk on the Kola Peninsula, is pleased to clarify via RNS information regarding the PGM resources contained in the Monchetundra flanks area and other immediate areas adjacent to its production license.

Background:

Eurasia's Monchetundra Project saw state approval of maiden reserves and resources in late 2018 with the final issue of a mining right issued for this PGM discovery following shortly thereafter. The Company has operated various exploration licenses in the area since 2005, when considerable work was undertaken in a joint venture with Anglo American, then the world's largest PGM producer. As is normal practice, the exploration tenement was redrawn on a number of occasions, and finally rescinded into a mining license in two sub-areas within the larger exploration license. These are the West Nittis and Loipishnune deposits, issued as a single mining license valid to 2038, but existing as two areas separated by 3km (see announcement dated 11 December 2018 which sets out the details of this licence grant).

As a direct consequence of the issue of the mining right, the Company was entitled, as per Russian sub-soil licensing laws, to apply for further ground in the immediate vicinity of the mining license. This exclusive right is in place to protect parties to which a mineral discovery is credited, in the event that their mineral reserve can be shown to be continuous beyond their production license. This can occur if, for example, the Company's initial exploration license did not include all of the on-strike continuity of a potential ore body. When a mining right is approved, it is normal practice for a Company to make application for further exploration licenses within a 5km perimeter of the mining right. This new application is called a 'flanks application'. Eurasia's flanks application is for an 8km² area, covering on-strike continuation of mineralisation at both the Loipishnune and West Nittis open pittable reserves. The application was made in September 2019 and further details are set out in the announcement dated 26 September 2019.

Russian State Cadastre of Mines:

Eurasia maintains a drilling and exploration database of proprietary information for the Monchetundra Project some of which is information dating back to the Company's joint venture with Anglo American. This includes the area for which the mining licence was received in late 2018, as well as the surrounding area within a larger exploration license.

The Company and its working partner CKE (CKE works with Eurasia and also Norilsk Nickel, Nord Gold, Barrick and other miners on Kola) also maintain databases on the regional prospectively and projects. In addition, the Company sought further information from the Murmansk Archive for Geological Information, the regional state cadastre of mines, to obtain the current knowledge base of resources and reserves within the 5km perimeter of the mining rights, in what is a well-established mining area with numerous ore bodies occurring in an 'cluster' at the contact between two mafic and ultra-mafic layered massifs. The Company's proprietary information was compiled with the official geological archive, in considering the best area to apply for as a flanks application. The Geological archive is a sub-division of Rosnedra, the Federal Agency for subsoil use, and is mandated by law to maintain the state Cadastre of mining deposits, which is essentially a government inventory of the state resources, according to prescribed procedures, including review by an expert panel of independent resource professionals. (the "Russian Cadastre"). The data contained in the official Geological archive forms the basis for this RNS.

The below list of resources has been compiled by the Murmansk Geological Archive and represents the current database of resources in the immediate area of the Monchetundra production license.

This information contained in the Russian Cadastre has not been independently verified by Eurasia and it is therefore provided for guidance purposes only.

The Company would need to verify the data in the Russian Cadastre through additional work and drilling if it was to incorporate the data into the defined resources of the Company (as required by the relevant mining standards and the AIM rules). The Company may undertake such work as and when it is deemed necessary and in any event if it determines to progress with expanding the operations of the Company; building upon the data sets already established by previous workers.

To summarise, as per the information from the Russian Cadastre:

·     there are potential resources within the existing Company licence and the flanks application of c.15M oz. This includes Eurasia's current state approved reserves and resources of c.1.9million ounces (see the Company's Resource Statement, announced  15 June 2017) and c.13Moz detailed in the Russian Cadastre; 

·     additional potential resources occurring within 5km of the Monchetundra Mining license and areas neighbouring the Company's deposits of  c.4M oz;  and

·     additional potential resources within the wider Monchegorsk district in which the Monchetundra license is located of c.21M oz.

The potential for the area could be 40M oz of PGMs, but as stated above this data has not been independently verified by Eurasia and other than the area covered by the Company's existing licence the Company does not yet have any other licences in the area

However, the directors believe the Company is already established as the dominant player in Kola PGM with its production license until 2038 and its exclusive right for the flanks under applicable laws, and has a 'first mover advantage'. Receipt of approval for the flanks application would allow the Company to become further established in the region generally, allowing it to pursue its internal long term corporate strategy of establishing a new global centre for PGM on the Kola Peninsula; although at this stage the strategy is still at an inception stage and further information will be provided in due course. The Directors further believe the new favourable price environment for PGM, and particularly historically all-time high prices for palladium create an opportunity to recommence work at currently lapsed primarily palladium projects in the region, should any such opportunities arise

Christian Schaffalitzky, Chairman at Eurasia commented: 'We are pleased to offer this further update on the resource surrounding our Monchetundra Project. We are now well established in Kola with a production license valid until 2038 and our exclusivity to the flanks firmly established under applicable laws. We have always noted the significant potential in the area which we now more strongly believe can be developed into a new global mining region for PGM to rival other large PGM producing regions of the world, including the Bushveld Complex in South Africa and the Taimyr Peninsula in Russia. It is not unusual for layered mafic massif to contain multiple deposits and deposit types. The Monchepluton Massif, hosting the majority of the deposits mentioned here, is generally accepted to contain many of the internationally recognised intrusive igneous PGM deposit types. With our EPC and Financing contract with Sinosteel signed and valid for 10 years our 2 open pittable Monchetundra deposits are fully financed and we can in our opinion rapidly move into production. We have also previously stated (see announcements dated 24 October and 25 November 2019) that we are considering all options for the Monchetundra Project including the potential sale - the resource potential here mentioned, as well as our expansion strategy on the Kola Peninsula as a future palladium district are key considerations in our discussion.'

Consent for release

Christian Schaffalitzky, FIMMM, PGeo, CEng, is a director of the Company. He has reviewed the update and consents to/approves the inclusion of the information in the form and context in which it appears here. He is a Competent Person for the purposes of the reporting of these results.

Further detail.

To summarise, according to the Russian Cadastre, there are potential resources within the existing Company licence and the flanks application of c.15M oz; additional potential resources within 5km of the Monchetundra Mining license of c.7M oz and total potential resources within the wider Monchegorsk district, according to the Russian Cadastre, of c.40M oz of PGMs.

The total potential resources in the Russian Cadastre breaks down as:

·     c.15M oz of PGM within the Flanks application for which the Company has exclusive rights, and inclusive of the Company's c.2M oz reserve and resource (A below).

·     c.4M oz (in addition to the above c.15M oz of PGM also within 5Km) neighbouring the Monchetundra Project and within 5Km (B).

The total amount potentially controlled by Eurasia and under flanks exclusivity right application is c.15M oz of PGM as per the Russian cadastre of state resources; although this data has not yet been independently verified by Eurasia.

·     Further potential resources of c. 21Moz in established and unlicensed resources and reserves in the district surrounding the town of Monchegorsk, that is located 8Km from Monchetundra (C).

(А) Within the Flanks application submitted by Eurasia 80% owned subsidiary Terskaya Mining Company in September 2019:

1.    Potential Pd and PGM resources of c.13.1t (421k oz) (as per State Cadastre of Deposits, No. 18 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019)

2.    Potential resources of Pd and PGМ c.14.7 t (472k oz) and of gold c. 0.7t (as per State Cadastre of Deposits, No. 20 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019)

3.    Potential resources of Pd and PGМ c. 320.1 t (10.2M oz) and of gold c. 10.1t (as per State Cadastre of Deposits, No. 21 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019)

4.    NKT (Nittis Kumuzhanaya Travanyaha) nickel, copper, cobalt, platinum, palladium, gold and silver with the following potential resources: Ni - c. 298,000 t, Cu - c. 229,000 t, Co - c. 11,300 t, Pt - c. 18.5 t, Pd - c. 55.0 t, (Pt+Pd= 73.5t or 2.3M oz) Au - c. 7.6 t, Ag - c. 185t (as per State Cadastre of Deposits, No. 22 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019).

The total in items 1 to 4 above, which excludes the c.2M oz in Eurasia's current production license is c.13M oz of PGM of which palladium is predominant. The Pd to Pt ratio in Monchetundra production license varies from 1.7 to 5.8 Pd/Pt ratio, a similar range is observed in the Flanks area.

(B) Neighbouring the Monchetundra Project and within 5Km (Eurasia does not currently have any licenses in this area). 

1.    "Pentlandite Creek" with Pd and PGM potential resources of c. 66.2 t (2.1M oz) (No. 14 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019).

2.    "East Monchetundrovskoye" with Pd and PGM potential resources of c. 16.3t (0.54M oz) (No. 12 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019)

3.    "Satellites Lodes to Lode 330" with Pd and PGM potential resources of c. 36.3t (1.2M oz) (No. 13 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019).  

4.    "Offset Mineralization" with Pd and PGM potential resources of c. 6.0t (192k oz) (No. 17 on Murmansk Geological Information Archive Reference Note of 07.03.2019).

Also of note, and falling within 5km of the Company's mining license are the Vuruchaivench deposits of low sulphide PGM ores, which, as per information provided from the Russian Cadastre have  demonstrated total Balance sheet Reserves in Russian A, B and C1 categories of c. 13,580,000 t and a further c.70 M tonnes in Russian C2.

The area adjacent the flanks application and within 5km of the Company's mining license therefore contains a potential for c.4M oz. of PGMs as per the Russian Cadastre, and excluding the Vuruchavench Deposits.

(C) Selected further PGM projects in the Monchegorsky District (Eurasia does not currently have any licenses in this area)

The known large projects demonstrated here are: Fedorova Tundra, Eastern Pana, Western Pana which have seen generations of exploration work by international mining companies, but are currently inactive. Further information on these deposits can be found in various public domain sources:

1.    Fedorova Tundra, occurring in the west of the Fedorova Pansky Massif which occurs approximately 100km southwest of the town of Monchegorsk, and was previously operated by Barrick Gold. Potential resources and reserves are c.1.2M oz. of Pt at 0.3 g/t and c. 5.5M oz. of Pd at 0.9 g/t. The Licence is currently suspended. (total of c.6.7M oz)[1]

2.    Eastern Pana, also known as Eastern Chuarvy deposit and occurring directly to the east of the Fedorova Tundra deposit and within the Fedorova Pansky Massif. Exploration was carried out by Consolidated Puma, later Bema Gold (acquired by Kinross in 2007). The reserves were approved and the deposit is not currently licensed. The resource and reserve potential is c.220 tons (C2+P1+P2 categories) or 6.4M oz.[2]

3.    Western Pana, hosting the Kievey deposit, again occurring in the Fedorova Pansky Massif, and currently unlicensed. The reserves were estimated by AO Pana and funded by Urals Minerals. С1+С2 PGM reserves are c. 50.8 t. The total potential of the deposit down to 500 m is c. 250 t of PGM. (8M oz)[3]

The total for the above items 1 to 3 is therefore 21M oz.

The Company would also like to highlight further regional potential specifically in the Volchetundra Project, previously operated by the Company under a Joint Venture with Anglo American from 2004 to 2011, and subsequently surrendered to focus on the Monchetundra Project. Volchetundra occurs 5 km from Monchegorsk. This high palladium deposit now becomes of interest given the recent price appreciation in palladium and the future price outlook. Palladium prices through 2011 averaged less than $600 per ounce. The Company's database of proprietary information including 12,000m of drilling will be compiled in due course to reassess the projects future potential development. If the Company did want to explore this project again, it would have to re-apply for the relevant licences and there can be no guarantee that they will be granted.

Eurasia Mining Plc

Christian Schaffalitzky/ Keith Byrne

[phone]

WH Ireland Limited (Nomad and Joint Broker)

Katy Mitchell / James Sinclair-Ford

[phone]

First Equity Limited (Joint Broker)

Jason Robertson

Tel: [phone]

Optiva Securities (Joint Broker)

Christian Dennis

Tel: [phone]

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014

Shareholders are reminded that the Company does have the following media channels including:

https://vimeo.com/user71951711

https://twitter.com/eurasiamining

https://www.proactiveinvestors.com/LON:EUA/Eurasia-Mining-PLC/

https://www.voxmarkets.co.uk/listings/LON/EUA/

About Eurasia Mining PLC (LSE: EUA)

Eurasia Mining is a long-established palladium, platinum, iridium, rhodium and gold focused production company quoted on the London Stock Exchange AIM market, with an operating PGM mine in the Ural Mountains palladium open pit deposit at Monchetundra.  In addition, Eurasia maintain an interest in the Semonovsky Gold in Mine Tailings Project, an asset demonstrating potentially low-cost new-term gold production potential.

Eurasia's two core projects are:

The West Kytlim operating mine (of which the Company owns 68%), which is the largest alluvial platinum reserve in the world currently, with 2,283 kilograms of raw platinum in reserves, and resources and resource potential to a further 10 tonnes of raw platinum. A single washplant has operated on site during 2018 and 2019, with further increases in production planned from multiple washplants. The mine was previously contracted to generate cashflow from which to finance further capitalisation of the asset. All contractors were retired from the operation in September 2019 and since then Eurasia has been operating on an owner operated (100% of revenue) basis.

The Monchetundra Project (of which the Company owns 80%), has in place (signed October 2016) an EPCF (Engineering Procurement Construction and Financing) contract with Sinosteel, a state-owned Chinese corporation focused on mining. This agreement fully finances the Project through building of the 1.7m tonnes per annum processing facility at the Monchetundra Project. This financing contract can be drawn down at the option of the Company, and to date the Company has not activated this option.

 

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[1] Barrick Gold Quarterly Report, dated 21 February 2008

[2] Article co-authored by the Presidential Envoy in the Northwestern Federal District, Ilya Iosifovich Klebanov and the Head of the department for subsoil use in the North Western Federal District Alexey Valentinovich Lebedev. The article may be found in the All Russian geological institute database at http://atlaspacket.vsegei.ru/

[3] https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/1054978

 

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