PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Montana State Authority has issued ASX-listed Sandfire Resources’ Black Butte copper project with a draft mine operating permit (MOP), allowing the company to advance the project.
The draft MOP is expected within the next 30 days, and marked the culmination of an extensive process undertaken in conjunction with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality over the past two-and-a-half years, Sandfire said on Tuesday.
Sandfire MD Karl Simich told shareholders that the achievement of a "complete and compliant" status at Black Butte was a significant milestone for the project, with the MOP outlining the proposed development of an underground mining operation, with minimal surface footprint.
The achievement of "complete and compliant" status triggers the next key stage of permitting, which involves the development of an environmental-impact study (EIS), which is scheduled to start within the next 30 days and is expected to take 12 months to complete.
“We are very much looking forward to the next and final stage of the approval process, the 12-month EIS process, which is expected to kick off next month. Following that, we will move as quickly as possible into construction and development to unlock the significant economic value of the high-grade copper resource.
“This, in turn, will generate many positive benefits in terms of jobs, employment, business opportunities and investment,” Simich said.
The Black Butte project is a key part of Sandfire’s long-term strategic growth pipeline, and is estimated to hold a mineral resource of some 15.7-million tonnes, grading 3.4% copper for 533 600 t of contained copper.