PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Coal developer Atrum Coal on Tuesday reported that a scoping study into its flagship Groundhog anthracite project, in British Columbia, suggested the project could be developed at low capital costs.
For a capital investment of some $62-million, the project could deliver some 1.8-million tonnes a year of saleable product, generating a before-tax cash flow of $107-million.
If the project complied with Atrum’s aspirations of delivering some three-million tonnes a year of saleable product, the cash flow could increase to $293-million.
First anthracite coal shipments have been earmarked for the fourth quarter of 2014.
The scoping study incorporated a geological model based on historical drilling and trenching, as well as a drill programme completed in 2012. Owing to the timing of the scoping study, the planned 43 drill holes, to be completed in 2013, had not been included in the scoping study, but would be included in the prefeasibility study (PFS).
“With such encouraging drilling results, the company is confident of reporting upside in the PFS compared with the scoping study,” said MD Eric Lilford.
“It is important to note that the scoping study considers only one seam of 16 potential economic and mineable coal seams, from around 5% of the company’s 22 815 ha contiguous land-holding, leaving potential upside in future economic analysis.”
Meanwhile, Atrum has secured a 1.5-million-tonne port allocation at the Stewart Bulk Terminals, with the potential to expand, as well as a further five-million-tonne potential under a memorandum of understanding with Stewart World Port.