Sydney, Nov 23, 2005 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Anvil Mining Limited (ASX: AVM) is pleased to announce a significant increase in the resources of its 70% owned Kulumaziba (Kulu) Project in the Kolwezi Region of the Katanga Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The Kulu coarse rejects/tailings deposit was formed by the discharge of mineralized waste material into the Kulumaziba watercourse from the old Mutoshi washing plant, which operated from 1960 to 1987.
The deposit consists of two distinctly different types of mineralized material; coarse and fine tailings. The coarse tailings overlie the older and lower grade fine tailings. Anvil has completed an evaluation of the first 12.5km section of the river but evaluation work on the last section of the river between the 12.5km and the 14km marks is still ongoing.
The revised Kulu Mineral Resource estimate in this news release is based on an independent technical report prepared by FinOre Pty Ltd of Perth, Western Australia and is the result of an exploration and evaluation program consisting of pit sampling and air core drilling on the first 12.5 kilometers of the deposit during the last 11 months. The revised Mineral Resource estimate of the Kulu Deposit is summarized as follows:
Description and Contained MetalClassification Tonnes % Cu Tonnes of Copper Coarse TailingsMeasured 919,000 7.2% 65,900Indicated 3,423,000 3.7% 126,700Total Measured and Indicated 4,342,000 4.4% 192,600Inferred 286,000 6.5% 18,500Fine TailingsTotal Indicated 4,944,000 0.89% 44,000
"The expansion of the Kulu resource adds further justification to our pre-emptive decision to relocate the Dikulushi HMS plant to the Kulu project," commented Bill Turner, President and CEO of Anvil. "The imminent commissioning of the HMS plant and the intention now to commence a bankable feasibility study for the Stage II Kulu SXEW project, demonstrates that Anvil has a clear development strategy to produce in excess of 25,000 tonnes of cathode copper per year from this project within the next two and half years."
The HMS plant is projected to process 380,000 tonnes of ore per annum with an average head grade for the first three years of greater than 6.0% copper. Mineralized floats and tailings from the HMS plant will be stockpiled for future processing through a Stage II SXEW plant. Offtake agreements for the first twelve months of concentrate production are being finalized with smelters in Kolwezi and international metal trading companies.
The HMS plant is expected to produce in the region of 55,000 tonnes of concentrate per year, grading approximately 30% copper for approximately 16,500-17,000 tonnes of contained copper. Dikulushi Mine Anvil is also pleased to announce that its Dikulushi Mine achieved a new record production for the month of October with 4,155 dry metric tonnes of concentrate being produced, containing 2,152 tonnes of copper and 233,686 ounces of silver.
"The turnaround and continuing improvement of the Dikulushi Mine is a credit to the professionalism and commitment of our staff who have had to overcome the difficulties of replacing the mining and haulage fleets following the collapse of the mining contractor last year," commented Bill Turner, President and CEO of Anvil. "Credit for the improved performance at Dikulushi must also go to our long-term engineering partner, Intermet Engineering Pty Ltd, who designed the Dikulushi flotation plant that is now operating at well above design capacity."
Anvil Mining Limited is an unhedged copper and silver producer whose shares are listed for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the Australian Stock Exchange under the symbol AVM.
Contact
Bill Turner
President & CEO
Tel: +61 (8) 9481-4700
Email: billt@anvil.com.au
www.anvil.com.au
Craig Munro
Vice President Corporate & Finance
Tel: +61 (8) 9481-4700
Email: craigm@anvil.com.au
Robert La Valliere
Vice President Investor Relations
Telephone: Office +1 (514) 448-6664
Cell +1 (514) 944-9036
Email: robertl@anvil.com.au (Montreal)
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