Name of the Project
West Musgrave base metals project.

Location
West Musgrave Ranges of Western Australia.

Project Owner/s
Copper/gold miner OZ Minerals.

Project Description
The West Musgrave includes the Nebo-Babel nickel/copper and Succoth copper deposits.

OZ Minerals is hoping to establish the West Musgrave project as a scaleable, low-cost, long-life, openpit mining operation.

An updated prefeasibility study (PFS) has increased the project’s mineral ore reserves from 220-million tonnes, grading 0.36% copper and 0.33% nickel, to 253-million tonnes, grading 0.35% copper and 0.32% nickel.

Mineral resources have increased – from 340-million tonnes grading 0.36% copper and 0.33% nickel in the February 2020 PFS to 390-million tonnes grading 0.34% copper and 0.31% nickel in the updated PFS.

The updated PFS envisages a 12-million-tonne-a-year crushing, vertical roller mill, flotation operation, producing separate copper and nickel concentrates. The average nickel production from the project has increased from 22 000 t/y in the February 2020 PFS to 26 000 t/y in the updated PFS. Average copper production has increased from 28 000 t/y to 32 000 t/y.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The updated PFS has increased the project’s an after-tax net present value from A$800-million to A$1-billion and the internal rate of return from 20% to 25%, with a payback of about six years from the decision to mine.

Capital Expenditure
Preproduction capital has increased from A$995-million in the February 2020 PFS to about A$1.1-billion in the February 2021 updated PFS.

Planned Start/End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
OZ Minerals is expecting to make a final investment decision on its West Musgrave copper/nickel project by the second half of next year, pending progress on value-increasing options.

The company is considering more such options to leverage the global focus on the acceleration towards a low-carbon economy, with CEO Andrew Cole saying the project could contribute to sustainable mining as a low-emissions opencut mine, producing minerals essential to a low-carbon economy.

Other value opportunities being considered include increasing production above the current 12-million-tonne-a-year capacity while contemplating a third vertical roller mill that could allow for further energy management and emission reductions, and accelerating towards aspirations of a zero emissions mine and mining fleet.

Oz Minerals is also weighing renewable-energy power plant construction and operation ownership options, examining the construction of a downstream nickel processing plant on site and seeking interest from third parties in its potential development.

CEO Andrew Cole has said that the company is pleased with the progress made on the final study phase, with many aspects of the project well advanced and technically derisked.

Further, steady progress has been made on government approvals, with all key environmental approval documents for the Part IV approval submitted to the Western Australian Environment Protection Authority (EPA). The EPA visited the site for several days in early September, meeting with Traditional Owners and Oz Minerals to increase shared understanding of aspirations, requirements and expectations.

Covid-related travel restrictions and precautions have, however, delayed progress on development of the land access agreement with the Traditional Owners. Cole has said that the Traditional Owners have expressed support for the project and OZ’s priority is to ensure that they are fully informed, remain safe, and have a clear understanding of the impacts and opportunities the proposed mine will create, which is a process that will not be rushed.

Engineering design of the minerals processing plant, hybrid renewable power plant, village, aerodrome and nonprocessing infrastructure continue to derisk the project from a technical perspective. A site-wide geotechnical programme is concluding, with lab testing under way.

Further, an additional 47.5 km of infill drilling have been completed, primarily targeting the payback period, with results in line with expectations, increasing the company’s confidence in the Nebo Babel orebody knowledge.

“As we progress the final study phase, impacts on materials and labour availability in Western Australia have the potential to put pressure on capital costs. We will take these impacts into consideration as we develop the project schedule and budget next year, in preparation for a potential final investment decision in the second half of 2022,” Cole has noted.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
OZ Minerals, tel +61 8 8229 6600 or email info@ozminerals.com.