https://www.miningweekly.com

Taseko mulls minority sale in Florence project

27th October 2020

By: Mariaan Webb

Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor Online

     

Font size: - +

While discussions with potential lenders and finance providers for the development of the Florence copper project remain ongoing, Canadian base metals miner Taseko is also exploring the sale of a minority interest in the project to help develop the commercial operation.

The company, which on Monday announced its third-quarter results, said that discussions with interested parties were “advanced” and that a sale could fund a “significant” portion of the capital required for the project.

With an initial capital expenditure of $227-million, the Florence Copper commercial facility will produce an average of 85-million pounds a year of copper at a cost of $1.13/lb over its 20-year life-of-mine.

Taseko stated that it aimed to have a committed financing package in place before the receipt of its final permits. The company still requires one key permit to advance to production and expects to have it in hand by early 2021.

Meanwhile, Taseko reported that it had reverted to normal mining rates at its Gibraltar mine, in British Columbia, on the back of the swift recovery in copper prices.

Copper production in the third quarter was 28.9-million pounds. Copper grades in the final benches of the Granite pit were lower than expected and the miner reported that mining in the Granite pit was completed in early October. 

Gibraltar pit mining would start in the first part of 2021 with ore release occurring in the second half of the year.  Ore from the Gibraltar pit was expected to require less energy to grind which would provide substantial productivity and cost improvements when processed.

Gibraltar would produce about 130-million pounds this year.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

Comments

The content you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.

If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.

If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.

For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION