Mutoshi Project
The Mutoshi Project is Anvil’s second copper project and is located on the Kolwezi Klippe in the western part of the Congo Copperbelt.
Fast Facts
| Mutoshi Project | |
|---|---|
| Ownership | Anvil 70% - Gécamines 30% |
| Location | 10km east of Kolwezi in Katanga Province, DRC |
| Current Status | On care and maintenance since Q3 2008 |
| First Production | December 2005 - HMS Plant |
| Royalties | 2.5% of gross turnover to Gécamines and 2% NSR to DRC Government |
| Mining Agreement | DRC Government review of mining agreement was completed July 2009 |
The Company announced in July 2009 that it had completed an agreement with Gécamines and the Government of the DRC on the terms of its Mutoshi Joint Venture ("JV") agreement. The terms of the amended agreement were disclosed in the July 20, 2009 press release.
The Mutoshi Project Stage I is located in an area known as the Kolwezi Klippe, a major copper-cobalt district. The mining of the coarse reject tailings deposits, which require no waste stripping, drilling or blasting, started in late 2005 but ended in Q3 2008. Production in 2007 and 2008 was disappointing, due to persistent artisanal mining activity and heavy rainfall from October to April, which removed and redistributed the coarser grained, higher grade fraction of the resources further downstream. The remaining material which is finer grained and lower grade, negatively impacts the recovery in a HMS circuit.
Owing to the progressively lower metallurgical recovery from processing finer grained, lower grade material that was being encountered as mining progressed further downstream, the Company decided in Q3 2008 to suspend mining operations and placed the Mutoshi mine on care and maintenance in late 2008.
A Scoping Study completed in 2009 examined the potential for transitioning the Project in stages from the existing HMS operation to SX-EW processing of oxide open pit mine feed. This study indicated that the potential exists for developing a large bulk mining operation to process copper and cobalt deposits surrounding the old Mutoshi mine. Further exploration and infill drilling is required before a Mineral Resource estimate can be reported. In addition, further metallurgical testing and process engineering is required.
In-fill Drilling in Late 2011
The Company plans to start an in-fill drilling program in late 2011, the objective of which is to define sufficient near-surface oxide copper and cobalt mineralisation to enable evaluation of development options.
Partnership with Alexander Mining plc
Alexander Mining plc, listed: AXM - AIM and AXD - TSXV, signed a joint venture agreement with Anvil Mining Limited to build and operate a pilot plant to treat a total of 150,000 tonnes of cobalt ore at Anvil's Mutoshi deposit located in the Kolwezi region.
Under the terms of the JV Agreement, the construction and development of the Pilot Plant by Alexander Mining is conditional upon Alexander obtaining financing.
Anvil will be responsible for providing a minimum of 150,000 tonnes of cobalt ore to the Pilot Plant as well as providing access and infrastructure support for construction of the Pilot Plant at Mutoshi.
Revenue generated from the sale of cobalt produced from the Pilot Plant shall be used first, to repay Alexander's capital and operating costs; second, to repay costs incurred by Anvil; and third, any remaining revenue is to be distributed equally between Alexander and Anvil.
The results from the Pilot Plant will form part of a decision by Anvil on progressing to a feasibility study for the development of a commercial-scale plant at Mutoshi. More information
Kulumaziba River Mineral Resource Estimate
| Classification | Estimation Date | Thousand Tonnes | Copper Grade (%) | Contained Copper Metal (Tonnes) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indicated (coarse tailings) | Sept. 30, '08 | 1,500 | 2.30 | 34,500 |
| Indicated stockpile (coarse tailings) | Dec. 31, '08 | 102.7 | 3.70 | 3,800 |
| Concentrate stockpile | Dec. 31, '09 | 2.5 | 17.0 | 425 |
| Total Indicated (coarse tailings & concentrate stockpile) | 1,605.2 | 2.41 | 38,725 | |
| Inferred (coarse tailings) | Sept. 30. '08 | 500 | 3.55 | 17,750 |
- Mineral estimates have been classified and reported using the guidelines of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (the JORC Code). These guidelines are generally consistent with those of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy ("CIM").
- The Kulumaziba River tailings provided feed to the Mutoshi Stage I HMS plant, which ceased processing in the third quarter of 2008.
Scoping studies undertaken to date no longer account for the recovery of fine tailings and hence these are no longer included in the Resource and Reserve statement.
- No cut-off grade was used for the river tailings estimate.