Zinc-lead boost for Terramin in Algeria

Terramin Australia will proceed immediately with the pre-feasibility study into its....

Terramin Australia will proceed immediately with the pre-feasibility study into its flagship Tala Hamza zinc-lead mine in Algeria following positive new results from a technical and economic review just completed.Based on the results announced from a study by WorleyParsons and Golder Associates, Terramin will proceed with the pre-feasibility study of an ore throughput rate of 2.0 million tonnes per annum, based on a sub-level cave average mill grade estimate of 6.3% zinc and 1.9% lead for the mine. This is a 66% increase on the original estimated throughput for the Tala Hamza mine. Sub-level caving has been favoured over long-hole open stoping due to the potential to achieve higher throughput rates with this mining method. Terramin’s Executive Chairman, Dr Kevin Moriarty said the C1 zinc cash cost of US43 cents per pound is in the lowest quartile of current world production. “Production rates well in excess of 2.0Mtpa may be feasible given the results of recent Terramin diamond drilling completed since the scoping study commenced. This is the first step toward a larger mine,” Dr Moriarty said. “In particular, these drill results include five intersections of greater than 200m,” he said. The estimated direct and indirect Tala Hamza project capital costs are US$207m and US$70m respectively at the 2.0Mtpa production rate. The total capital, including owner’s costs and a US$52m contingency, is US$356m. The study identified potential infrastructure cost savings of up to $70m that Terramin said would be the subject of further review during the pre-feasibility study. Dr Moriarty said the study recognised that regional exploration prior to the discovery of Tala Hamza had identified wide spread lead-zinc mineralisation in the district. He said sterilisation drilling would commence soon to confirm the suitability of these sites.