African Consolidated Resources plc / Ticker: AFCR / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining
4 December 2012
African Consolidated Resources plc ('ACR' or 'the Company')
Preliminary Economic Assessment
African Consolidated Resources plc, the AIM listed resource and development company focused on Southern Africa, announces further information following its announcement on the 14 November 2012. The Company has completed a Preliminary Economic Assessment ('PEA') on what was referred to as Pit 2 of the Pickstone Gold project in the earlier announcement. The Company retained an established Johannesburg based mining consultancy, PDNA Minxcon, to undertake this study being the first component of the feasibility study commissioned at the beginning of October 2012. The study focused solely on an open-pit operation on the Pickstone sheer zone and has considered neither the Pickstone underground nor the Peerless sheer zone open-pit and/or underground potential.
The PEA confirms early indications of a high grade open pit able to produce at a rate of 50, 000 tonnes per month ('ktpm') and a mined grade of 4.6 grams per tonne ('g/t') by applying a mining cut-off of 2.0 g/t derived from a resource grade of 5.1 g/t. At this cut-off grade the open pit will produce an estimated 720,000 gold ounces over a life of mine of 10 years. Applying a 1.0 g/t cut-off at the same production rate, the open pit will yield 850,000 gold ounces for a life of mine of 16 years.
The project will require an estimated investment in the order of US$60 million which in turn will yield an NPV10% (Net Present value at 10% discount rate) of approximately US$300 million (IRR 128%) and a payback anticipated within 18 months applying a 2.0 g/t cut-off. The gold price assumed is US$/oz 1,500 whilst an estimated operating cost of approximately US$/oz. 450 is applied.
The PEA considered 26 scaled options ranging from 25ktpm to 100ktpm production. This options' analysis has provided management an early perspective on the scalability of the operation with a view to maximising shareholders' returns. The 50ktpm option has been selected at this time on the basis of its operating sustainability and capital efficiency.
This PEA is considered to have a confidence level of (+/-) 30%. The Company is continuing the feasibility study and is targeting completion in Q2 2013. The full PEA document can be viewed on the Company's website at www.acrplc.com.
This announcement has been reviewed by Mike Kellow BSc, a member of the Australian Institute of Geologists and Technical Director of ACR. Mr Kellow meets the definition of a "qualified person" as defined in the AIM Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies.
The technical economic evaluation presented in the study is not based on any JORC compliant Mineral Resource classification and should be considered preliminary in nature. There is no certainty that the economic forecast will be realised. Capital and operating costs are also preliminary in nature and may vary once further metallurgical test-work is undertaken and quotations from suppliers are received.
**ENDS**
For further information visit www.acrplc.com or please contact:
Roy Tucker African Consolidated Resources plc +44 (0) 1622 816918
+44 (0) 7920 189012
Andrew Godber Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited +44 (0) 207 886 2500
Callum Stewart Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited +44 (0) 207 886 2500
Susie Geliher St Brides Media & Finance Ltd +44 (0) 20 7236 1177
GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS
Term | Explanation | Acronym |
archean | One of the four principal eons of Earth history. The oldest rock formations exposed on the surface of the Earth are Archean (2500-2800 million years) or slightly older and surviving rocks from this eon are mostly metamorphic or igneous. | |
Au | chemical symbol for gold | |
CAPEX | capital expenditure | |
core | cylindrical sample of rock as cut by a diamond drill | |
diamond drilling | Drilling method using a diamond-impregnated cutting bit to obtain a core sample of rock | |
greenstone belt | belts of metamorphosed sedimentary and igneous rocks of Archean age | |
JORC | Joint Ore Reserves Committee of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy | |
lodes | Higher grade portion of mineralised zones, usually with specific orientation | |
mineralised zones | hydrothermally altered structural features containing potentially valuable minerals | |
orebody | economically viable portion of a mineralised zone | |
Resource | mineral resource as defined by the JORC Code 2004 | |
reverse circulation drilling | rotary percussion drilling whereby the sample is returned from the cutting head inside the rod string to surface thereby avoiding contamination from the walls of the hole | RC |
strip ratio | ratio between the volume of total waste material and the volume of gold bearing ore | |
sulphide | sulphur bearing metallic mineral | |
tenement | an area encompassing a number of blocks of claims | |
UNITS | ||
cm.g/t | centimetre grams per tonne - metal content expressed as grade times thickness | |
g | gramme | |
g/t | grammes per metric tonne - metal concentration | |
ha | hectare | |
kg | kilogramme, a thousand grammes | |
km | kilometre | |
koz | thousand ounces | |
kt | thousand metric tonnes | |
kv | thousand volt | |
kva | thousand volt amperes | |
m | metre | |
mm | millimetre | |
µm | micron, or millionth of a metre | |
Mt | million metric tonnes | |
Moz | million ounces | |
oz | fine troy ounce equaling 31.1048 grammes - normal unit used in selling gold | |
ppb | parts per billion | |
ppm | parts per million, equivalent to g/t | |
t | metric tonne | |
t/m3 | density measured as metric tonnes per cubic metre | |
troz | troy ounce | |
° | degrees |