PERTH (miningweekly.com)- Nickel miner Western Areas has reported a 311% increase in the total massive sulphide resource at its Cosmos Odysseus project, in Western Australia, increasing it to 22 838 t grading 8.4% nickel.
An increase in the Odysseus North disseminated indicated resource, and an overall increase to the inferred disseminated resource has seen the project’s total mineral resource now estimated at 7.9-million tonnes, grading 2.5% nickel for 199 174 t of nickel.
Western Areas MD Dan Lougher said on Friday that the increase in the confidence level of the resource at Odysseus was one of the critical path items for the completion of the project’s definitive feasibility study, and would support the definition of an ore reserve for the project.
“The amount of massive sulphides included from limited drilling and the increase in total nickel tonnes was above our expectation when we completed due diligence on this acquisition,” Lougher told shareholders.
A recently completed prefeasibility study estimated that the Odysseus project could deliver an average of 12 000 t/y of nickel in concentrate over an initial mine life of seven years, and would require a capital expenditure of between A$190-million and A$210-million.
Lougher on Friday also announced that work on the definitive feasibility study has now started, with Piran Mining appointed as project manager.