conference call infoI listened to the CC today and here are a couple of notes from that presentation that I found interesting:
The company has already achieved a rate of over 1600 tonnes produced from the mine in half a day, and they estimate it would be no problem to run up to 3000 tonnes in a day. That material is being stockpiled at surface and it represents development ore that is extracted as the workings are advanced.
The first stopes will be blasted in Octover of this year.
The operating costs include estimates of about $26 per tonne for extraction, $14 per tonne for milling, and around $30 per tonne for smelting. The study obviously used those estimates since they went with a cutoff grade of $80 per tonne.
Recovery efficiency is projected to be extremely high for a polymetallic deposit, with over 90% of the silver, 91% of lead, 73% of Copper, and 88% of the Zinc being recovered in concentrates.
All permits are in place for the operation. Water availability is not expected to be an issue. Ongoing environmental monitoring is already in place.
All of the mill equipment is already secured and refurbished, ready to be installed at the plant.
There are 20 known deposits within the property area controlled by SPM.
The feasibility study was completed using conservative cost assumptions for long term estimates. If the current metals prices were plugged in, the internal rate of return for the project will come in at over 60% which is extremely bullish, meaning less than a year and a half of operations to return the entire investment to put the mine into production.
The resource assumptions were calculated using extremely conservative numbers. They did not include all of the new discovery zones since April in the study, nor the previously outlined zones at the Candaleria Mine. So the 6-year mine life is conservative and the actual resources will probably amount to much more than that.
My take on all of the above is that the company is going out of their way to be conservative and set the bar low for expectations. They have obviously decided to under-promise and over-deliver. I think they will be in production earlier than they have disclosed, and I think they will make a lot more money than they have projected.
cheers!
COACH247
Voluntary disclosure: I own shares of SPM and the company is a paid advertiser on my website.