PERTH (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Element 25 has been awarded a mining lease for its Butcherbird manganese project, in Western Australia, by the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.
“The grant of a mining lease at Butcherbird is a pivotal step in the development of this world class project and puts the company in a position to fast-track the project towards commencement of production and cashflow,” said Element 25 MD Justin Brown.
Brown noted that a number of the relevant approvals required to start mining were well advanced, and will be lodged within the coming weeks.
The company is targeting a staged development strategy with production of manganese concentrate to generate early cashflows, with a low capital requirement for Stage 1, followed by an expansion into downstream processing to produce high purity manganese.
A prefeasibility study into the Butcherbird project has estimated base case annual production of 312 000 t/y of medium-grade lump manganese concentrate, grading between 30% to 35% manganese, over a mine life of 42 years.
The study estimated that a capital investment of A$14.5-million would be required to fund the project, along with A$9.2-million in working capital. The project is expected to generate average annual operating cash flows of A$32.1-million between years one and five of production.