JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Aim-listed Firestone Diamonds expects to start production at its Liqhobong project, in Lesotho, in the fourth quarter of this year, with plant construction and commissioning currently ahead of target.
The miner on Wednesday reported that construction was 85% complete, against a revised target of 81%, while 18% of the the plant had been commissioned.
The remaining work relates to the continued completion of the final equipment installation and the installation of the electrical and control cabling and is expected to be completed early in the fourth quarter.
Firestone expects the operation will ramp up to nameplate capacity of 3.6-million tonnes a year or 500 t/h to recover up to one-million carats a year, within six months of the start of production.
During commissioning, ore from mixed low-grade stockpiles and diluted ore from the main pit will be processed through the plant. The variability of this ore will influence the recovery of run-of-mine carats.
It is difficult at this stage to predict the average dollar per carat expected for early sales of diamonds. The company expects to treat between 1.8-million and 2-million tonnes of ore during the 2017 financial year.
Within this period, it is estimated that between 380 000 ct and 450 000 ct will be produced at Liqhobong. Costs are projected to be in the region of $12/t to $14/t processed.
CEO Stuart Brown said the company would remain fully financed throughout its ramp-up period and expected to host its first diamond sale in January 2017. “The excitement and momentum is building nicely and we are looking forward to the recovery of our first carats the fourth quarter,” he added.
The project remains within the original $185.4-million budget and by end-June 76% of the funds had been spent on the project against the revised capital budget of R2.1-billion.