Rambler a go and not a share traded.Scoping study positive, pre-feas a go...and not a share traded. Not to mention no associated news release from Altius. Disappointing to say the least.
Rambler Metals moves ahead with prefeasibility at Ming
2008-06-02 07:26 ET - News Release
Mr. George Ogilvie reports
RAMBLER COMPLETES SCOPING STUDY AND MOVES AHEAD TO PRE-FEASIBILITY
RamblerMetals and Mining PLC has resolved to progress its Ming copper-goldproject located on the Baie Verte peninsula of Newfoundland, Canada, tothe prefeasibility stage, following the receipt of a high-level scopingstudy from SRK Consulting in conjunction with SNC Lavalin and ThibaultAssociates.
The study considered a 4,000-tonne-per-dayunderground mine producing a copper concentrate with gold and silvercredits, with a mine life of 12 years.
Recoveries used in thestudy were based on metallurgical testwork undertaken by SGS Lakefieldunder the supervision of Thibault Associates. Ore processing for thefootwall zones using standard grinding and floatation techniques isestimated to achieve a 98.6-per-cent-copper recovery with a concentrategrade of 28.2 per cent. The testwork on the massive sulphides producedlower recoveries, and a number of recommendations have been made tooptimize the processing circuit, as well as incorporating a goldrecovery circuit.
The scoping study was based on a resource thatis not compliant with National Instrument 43-101. As such, the scopingstudy is considered conceptual in nature, and under National Instrument43-101, cannot be released to the public as a document. Details ofRambler's National Instrument 43-101-compliant resource statement werepublished on April 30, 2008.
George Ogilvie, PEng, president and chief executive officer, commented:
"Weare delighted to be moving the project to the prefeasibility stage. Thescoping study has confirmed our belief that the resource we havedelineated at the Ming project over the last three years is ofsufficient size and grade to move ahead.
"We instructed SRK toexamine the feasibility of a 4,000-tonne-per-day operation as it wasimportant for us to know that the bulk-tonnage, low-grade footwallzones at the Ming mine are capable of sustaining a profitable long-lifemining operation.
"We will now commence a prefeasibility study todetermine the optimal mine plan. This is most likely to be a two-phaseoperation; beginning with a lower rate of production from the massivesulphides and then moving on to the higher-tonnage, lower-gradefootwall zones."
Ming mine proceeding to prefeasibility
Theprefeasibility study will be based around a mine plan initially miningthe massive sulphide ore at a lower production rate, ramping up to thefull production rate of up to potentially 4,000 tonnes per day afterseveral years. The board is confident that this approach will reduceboth the initial capital requirement and the time to first production,while increasing early cash flows and operating margins.
Therehas been a wealth of drill data produced from the underground programat the Ming mine since the cut-off date for the current NationalInstrument 43-101 resource and Rambler intends to publish an updatedresource statement later this year. This new resource will form thebasis of the prefeasibility study.
The exploration potential ofthe Ming mine remains one of the project's greatest assets. All the orezones are open at depth and to the west, and in the case of the Mingmassive sulphide, along strike as well. Once the mine is substantiallydewatered, Rambler plans to drive new exploration development alongstrike of the Ming massive sulphide horizon to hopefully identify newdrill targets. Equipment for this development has already been orderedand is expected to arrive by the end of June.
Rambler has alreadyinitiated the baseline environmental study that will be required torepermit the Ming mine, a "brownfield site." Environmental permittingof the mine is expected during 2009, with the objective ofre-commissioning the mine in 2010.
Larry Pilgrim, PGeo, is thequalified person responsible for the technical content of this releaseand has reviewed and approved it accordingly. Mr. Pilgrim is anindependent consultant contracted by Rambler Metals and Mining PLC.