PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Nickel miner Mincor Resources has marked a key milestone at its Cassini nickel project, in Western Australia, firing and extracting the first production stope.
“Firing the first stope from a brand-new operation is a tremendous milestone for the company, marking the culmination of significant exploration, development and production activities over several years. I would like to recognise the entire team for realising this achievement,” said MD Gabrielle Iwanow.
“The commencement of stoping at Cassini is another important step forward in our ramp-up towards full-scale production over the second half of 2023.”
Iwanow said that the start of stoping at Cassini was also a significant step in the operational ramp-up of Mincor’s Kambalda nickel operations, with both Cassini and Northern Operations continuing to make steady progress towards achieving full-scale production, forecast to accelerate over the second half of 2023.
Mincor in 2020 approved the A$68-million development of the Kambalda project, with the project forecast to produce 71 000 t of nickel and 5 000 t of copper over a five-year mine life. The flagship Cassini mine will contribute 56% of the total nickel-in-concentrate production over the initial life of the project.