TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Calgary-based TVI Pacific, which owns a 60% interest in the Agata iron/nickel laterite project, in the Agusan del Norte province, Philippines through subsidiary TVI Resource Development (TVIRD), on Friday said it had completed a second shipment of direct shipping ore (DSO).
The high-iron, low-nickel content DSO totalled 55 499 wet metric tonnes (wmt) of limonite, grading 0.84% nickel and 49% iron, and left the Port of Payong-Payong, in Agusan del Norte, Mindanao, on Monday, bound for Singapore-based Tewoo Hoperay.
Agata Mining Ventures (AMVI), the joint venture operator of the Agata project with Mindoro Resources, expected to receive gross revenue of $916 000 for the shipment, pending final assay and price adjustments.
"We are very pleased with the completion of the second shipment of nickel DSO at Agata in just three weeks' time, reflecting how smoothly the AMVI team has been able to operate on the ground. This is great news for TVI shareholders, as TVIRD's successful return to revenue and cash flow generation is critically important for TVIRD to secure a listing on the Philippine Stock Exchange, the achievement of which could substantially enhance its investment value for TVI and its shareholders,” TVI Pacific chairperson and CEO Cliff James said.
TVI explained that output remained steady at the Agata project and the remaining inventory to date was about 36 896 wmt of limonite, with nickel and iron content levels of 0.9% and 49%, respectively.
It expected that future shipments of about 55 000 wmt of DSO would continue about every three to four weeks with shipping rates expected to accelerate rapidly to 2.5-million wmt a year in 2015.