RE: MOU details? Contracts?The two purchasers are contracting for ALL of Acadian's production til the end of '08, with an option to extend that for another 2 years.
As far as dollar value (price per pound or tonne) of the contracts, I don't expect the company to make those details public, but as quarterly numbers start to roll in, one will be able to extrapolate roughly the prices obtained. I think it's safe to expect they will normally receive the "spot" price at time of delivery (or near it), since they have stated that they don't expect to do any hedging or forward selling.
From the news release:
"The M.O.U.s specify the principal commercial terms to be incorporated into definitive legally binding contracts for Scotia Mine production from start-up to December 31, 2008. The contracts will also include an opportunity to continue the arrangements for a further two years, to December 31, 2010, should the parties agree in late 2008 to principal terms governing production for this period. The definitive contracts are expected to be finalized and executed shortly.
The M.O.U. with Trafigura provides for Trafigura to purchase 9,000 to 10,000 wet tonnes (6-8% moisture) of zinc concentrate in 2007 and 15,000 to 18,000 tonnes in 2008. Trafigura will also purchase 5,000 to 6,000 wet tonnes of lead concentrate in 2007 and 10,000 to 12,000 tonnes in 2008. The MOU with MRI provides that MRI will purchase 8,000 – 10,000 wet tonnes of zinc concentrate in 2007 and 15,000 to 18,000 tonnes in 2008. These sales represent 100% of expected production from the Scotia Mine for these periods."