PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Boonanarring mineral sands project, in Western Australia, is poised for development after ASX-listed Image Resources satisfied all conditions precedent for the drawdown of a A$50-million loan facility.
The loan funds will be drawn down in a single tranche for the full amount, on or before May 25, the company said on Friday.
The company added that the receipt of the loan funds would finalise the full estimated capital funding requirements to complete the construction and commissioning of the Boonanarring project.
“Receiving formal notice that all conditions precedent to drawdown of funds under the loan agreement are satisfied is a very significant milestone for Image as it removes the final hurdle with respect to receipt of the balance of capital funds required to complete the construction and commissioning of the Boonanarring project,” said Image MD Patrick Mutz.
Construction at Boonanarring started on March 14, and the project construction is expected to take between six and seven months to complete. Commissioning of the processing plant and first production is scheduled to occur in the fourth quarter of this year.
The Boonanarring deposit is expected to deliver 1.1-million tonnes of heavy mineral concentrate and the Atlas deposit an additional 711 000 t. The Boonanarring deposit is estimated to have an initial mine life of five years, after which mining will move to the Atlas deposit, which will add a further three years to the overall mine life.