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Quarterly Operations and Production Update

13th Oct 2015 07:00

RNS Number : 0039C
Weatherly International PLC
13 October 2015
 

13 October 2015

Weatherly International plc

("Weatherly" or "the Company")

 Quarterly Operations and Production Update

 

Weatherly International plc (AIM: WTI) announces its quarterly update for the quarter ending 30 September 2015, being the first quarter of the financial year ending 30 June 2016.

 

Summary

 

· Tschudi production ramp up remains ahead of plan during the September Quarter

o Production of 3,554 tonnes of copper cathode for the quarter, averaging 1,185 tonnes per month, or approximately 84% of nameplate; and

o Exceeded increased guidance statement for September Quarter by 3%

· As per previous guidance, Tschudi is expected to reach design capacity of 1,400 tonnes per month during the current December quarter.

o Tschudi production guidance for CY2015 upgraded from 10,000 to 10,400 tonnes of copper cathode

· Commercial Production status has now been achieved at Tschudi, effective from 1 October 2015.

· Mr Peter Christians has been appointed to the position of General Manager at Tschudi, and will commence work in December.

· Ongoing performance testing at the Tschudi plant has provisionally identified the capacity to expand plant throughput to 20,000 tonnes of copper cathode per annum for expected capital expenditure of USD1.2 million, and this opportunity will be evaluated in due course.

· Otjihase and Matchless mines were converted to Project Development status and production of copper concentrate was suspended during September.

 

Craig Thomas, CEO of Weatherly, commented:

 

"The ramp up at Tschudi continues ahead of schedule, and by year end we will be running at design capacity. We are delighted to welcome Peter Christians to Weatherly as General Manager for Tschudi, and one of Peter's first tasks will be to evaluate opportunities to expand production rates there."

 

Tschudi

 

Production performance

 

Production results for the fourth quarter of the financial year 2015

 

Quarter ended Dec-2014

Quarter ended

Mar-2015

Quarter ended

Jun-2015

Quarter ended

Sep-2015

Total (Ore + Waste) Mined (000,t)

1,894

3,327

5,741

6,282

Ore Tonnes stacked (000,t)

460

637

821

Ore Stacked grade %

0.53

0.61

0.73

Copper Cathode Produced (t)

772

(6 weeks)

2,257

3,554

 

In September, the Company increased its quarterly production guidance by 15% from an average of 1,000 tonnes per month to an average of 1,150 tonnes per month of copper cathode. This revised guidance level was exceeded by a further 3%, with production averaging 1,185 tonnes per month. Production for CY2015 is now expected to reach approximately 10,400 tonnes of copper cathode, a 4% increase above the previously advised level of 10,000 tonnes.

 

Having operated at in excess of 80% of design capacity for a full quarter, the Company has now confirmed that Commercial Production status has been achieved at Tschudi and from 1 October onwards revenue and operating costs at Tschudi will no longer be capitalised. Consequently for the December quarter onwards, the Company will commence providing appropriate operating cost details for Tschudi.

 

The Company is currently updating resource and reserve estimations for Tschudi as of 30 June 2015. These estimates will be combined with all mining and processing experience gained to that date in order to produce updated mining and processing schedules. This work will be complete in November, and at that stage the Company will publish revised resources and reserves, together with internal estimates for life-of-mine operating and capital costs.

 

General Manager for Tschudi Appointed

 

As announced in May, recruitment efforts have been ongoing for a General Manager for Tschudi, and the Company is now delighted to announce the appointment of Mr Peter Christians to the position, commencing work in December.

 

Peter is a Namibian mining engineer with over 30 years of international mining experience. His most recent role was Country Manager & Managing Director for Reptile Uranium Namibia, a subsidiary of ASX-listed Deep Yellow Limited.

 

Peter is has held senior management positions across the globe in Namibia, Tanzania, Russia, Mali, Ghana, Australia and the USA with companies including Rio Tinto, AngloGold Ashanti, Bannerman Resources, Uranium One, ARMZ and Goldfields.

 

Peter is a Member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and has served as a representative to the Chamber of Mines of Namibia. He holds a BSc in Mining Engineering from Queens University in Canada.

 

Low Cost Expansion Opportunity Identified

 

During the operational ramp-up, the Company has had the opportunity to stress test various parts of the Tschudi Heap Leach SX-EW plant and to gather large quantities of performance data on the heap leach and plant performance. Based on this data, the Company has determined that the infrastructure could be upgraded from a capacity of 17,000 tonnes to 20,000 tonnes of copper cathode per annum (approximately 18% increase in production rates) via capital expenditure of USD1.2 million.

 

Once the Company has completed the reserve update exercise mentioned above, mining and processing schedule options will be evaluated to quantify the potential incremental financial benefits of production expansion to 20,000 tonnes per annum. The Company will update the market following this assessment.

 

Central Operations

 

As announced on 14th September 2015, mining and processing of ore at the Otjihase and Matchless underground mines was suspended in light of the current market conditions for copper. Central Operations have now been converted to Project Development status.

 

Negotiations have been successfully concluded with the trade union which represents affected employees. Existing stocks of ore on surface have been treated, and the underground mines and processing plant have been made safe and prepared for ongoing maintenance.

 

Detailed plans will now be prepared for the Project Development phase to be able to commence.

 

For further information please contact:

 

Weatherly International plc +44 (0) 20 7936 9910

Craig Thomas, Chief Executive Officer

Kevin Ellis, CFO and Company Secretary

 

RFC Ambrian Limited +44 (0) 20 3440 6800

(Nominated Adviser & Broker)

Samantha Harrison / John van Eeghen

 

Finncap +44 (0) 20 7220 0500

(Joint Broker)

Christopher Raggett

 

Blytheweigh +44 (0) 20 7138 3204

(Financial PR) Tim Blythe / Camilla Horsfall / Megan Ray

 

About Weatherly

 

Weatherly is an AIM listed copper mining company operating in Namibia in southern Africa. Its principal assets are one operating open pit copper mine called Tschudi and two underground copper projects called Otjihase and Matchless.

 

These assets will enable Weatherly to achieve its medium term goal of establishing a mining business capable of sustaining approximately 25,000 tonnes per annum of copper production.

 

The Company also has a 25% stake in the AIM listed company, China Africa Resources plc (AIM: CAF), which is developing a lead/zinc mine called Berg Aukas, also in Namibia.

This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
 
END
 
 
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