GREY:RNKLF - Post by User
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pierregon Apr 09, 2019 10:26am
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Post# 29601447
$RNX: Nickel production at Beta Hunt later this year?
$RNX: Nickel production at Beta Hunt later this year?Will RNC Minerals restart nickel production at Beta Hunt later this year? Assessment will be made this quarter as per Q & A RNC Q4 2018 https://ceo.ca/rnx?16221a4ca1dc:
Private investor: «On the Beta Hunt would you be profitable today if you were in nickel production again, because you know the price of nickel has gone up quite a bit and I saw your AISC looks like its fairly small last time you were doing it? »
Mark Selby: «Yeah, the question with respect to nickel is, again there are certain amount of development that we would require to access to some of the nickel reserves that are there. We would look again, as we move just in terms of turning on resources that we have access to development to. For us right now its just about generating some cash while we are completing the resource update. We would look at nickel as well as gold over the second quarter to bring that production into bear. »
Private investor: «Just from a technical stand point, not the financial stand point, let’s say nickel goes to 8 $ or 9 $ a pound which is possible next year, at the Beta Hunt could you go full book gold and nickel at the same time, if money aside? »
Mark Selby: «Could we mine both the gold and the nickel at Beta Hunt cash aside? They are two geologically distinct sets of ore bodies so the access to those things are both discrete elements and so other than the final haulage of the main ramp. There are two separate ore bodies as we had in our PEA, we were mining in that PEA significant quantities of gold and nickel at the same time. So, if it makes financial sense to do so it will be considered in the future. »
Also, Beta Hunt Q2 2018 Nickel all-in sustaining cost (AISC) (US$ per lb. sold) was $3.93 with Nickel mill grade, nickel (%) of 2.55% as per https://www.rncminerals.com/download/RNC+Q2+2018+Results+Presentation+15-Aug-2018_FINAL.pdf . In reserve they have 4.42 % nickel as per Table 2 Beta Hunt Nickel Mineral Resources https://www.rncminerals.com/beta-hunt-mine . Current nickel price is $5.97 USD per pound. Potential future profit is significantly increased at the current nickel price as the USD price is +$2.04 per pound than Q2 2018 AISC or +52%. If the company waits for $8 or $9 per pound the profit would be greater; this being said, the company will have to be very strategic and determine whether their cash needs warrant to restart nickel production sooner than later.