PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The board of ASX-listed Panoramic Resources has approved the A$41-million restart of the Savannah nickel project, in Western Australia.

The company told shareholders on Tuesday that the decision to restart operations at Savannah, which was placed on care and maintenance in April of last year, followed a 12-month process of review and implementation of operational strategies to improve and de-risk the project.

The restarted operation is expected to deliver 9 072 t/y of nickel, 4 683 t/y of copper and 676 t/y of cobalt in concentrate over a 12-year mine life, at an average all-in cost of A$6.36/lb of payable nickel, net copper and cobalt by-product credits.

“We learnt many lessons in the lead up to the temporary suspension of operations at Savannah in April 2020,amid the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Since that time, we have recapitalised the business and undertaken a range of planning and site-based initiatives to put the operation in a much stronger position for restart,” said Panoramic MD and CEO Victor Rajasooriar.

“This process of optimisation combined with the improved outlook for Savannah’s high-quality nickel, copper and cobalt products, has given the board confidence in approving the restart with a target of first shipment from Wyndham Port by the end of 2021.”

ASX-listed Perenti Global’s hard-rock underground mining subsidiary Barminco has received a letter of intent from Panoramic in relation to the development and production works at the Savannah project.

The new contract is expected to be worth some A$280-million over a four-year contract term, with Barminco to provide all underground mine development and production work, with mobilization expected in July this year.

Fellow-listed NRW Holdings’ subsidiary Primero Group has also received a letter of intent for operations and maintenance work at the Savannah project, which is expected to be worth some A$35-million.

“By engaging a contractor for both the underground mining and processing at Savannah, we are significantly reducing the human resourcing risk in a tightened labour market, which proved to be one of the key challenges encountered at Savannah during 2018 and 2019,” said Rajasooriar.

Barminco and Primero are leading contractors in their respective fields and have a reputation for delivering safe and productive services. Through their significant combined expertise, we expect that this new operating model will capitalise on the high-quality nature of the Savannah resource to generate significant value for our shareholders.

“The restart decision is expected to create 320 positions that will largely be filled by the contracted service provider workforce, with Panoramic maintaining a relatively low direct employee headcount of around 40. Strict Covid-19 protocols will continue to be in place for our Kimberley workforce as required by government guidelines.”

Ore processing at Savannah is scheduled to start in November this year, with first concentrate shipments targeted for December.

Meanwhile, Panoramic told shareholders on Tuesday that to fund the restart activities, the company had entered into a new five-year nickel and copper concentrate offtake agreement with Trafigura Group, starting in February 2023, aligning with the expiry of the existing offtake agreement with Jinchuan.

Trafigura has also agreed to provide a $45-million secured loan financing facility which, combined with revenue projections, is expected to fully cover the costs of the restart. Panoramic has a current cash balance of approximately A$27-million and no debt.

The funding comprises a $30-million five-year prepayment loan facility (PLF) and a $15-million revolving credit loan facility (RCF).

The PLF has a five-year term from drawdown with interest-only repayments required in the first 12 months. Debt repayments begin in the second year and are sculpted to align with project cash flows.

The RCF has an 18-month term and has the option to be repayable by way of a final bullet repayment of $15-million at the end of the facility term. Both facilities use the three-month Libor as a base interest rate plus a favourable interest margin.

“The new offtake agreement and loan financing facilities with Trafigura are a critical piece of the restart. The financing package avoids any dilutive equity raising by providing what we expect to be sufficient working capital to support a smooth ramp-up,” said Rajasooriar.

“The offtake agreement with Trafigura follows a competitive tender process and has terms which overall are more attractive than our current contract which is scheduled to expire in February 2023. Production from Savannah is now committed until February 2028, or for about half of the current 12-year mine life.”