TSX: TVI OTCQX: TVIPF
CALGARY, Oct. 16, 2013 /CNW/ - TVI Pacific Inc. (TSX:TVI) (OTCQX:TVIPF)
(TVI or the Company) announced today that its Philippine affiliate, TVI
Resource Development (Phils.), Inc. (TVIRD), has received the
Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) for the proposed Balabag
Gold-Silver Project to be located at Sitio Balabag, Brgy.Depore, Bayog,
Zamboanga del Sur.
Receipt of the ECC confirms the Company has satisfied the requirements
of Presidential Decree 1586, and its issue comes upon recommendation of
the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB). This marks a critical
milestone towards starting development of the Balabag Gold-Silver
Project, which will commence once approval is received of the
Declaration of Mining Project Feasibility (DMPF) by the Philippines
Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of the Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR).
Based on results of drilling completed to the end of June 2011 and as
included in the Balabag NI 43-101 technical report dated June 23, 2012,
the current indicated mineral resource is estimated to be 1.78 million
tonnes averaging 2.34 grams per tonne of gold and 72.3 grams per tonne
of silver, containing 134,262 ounces of gold and 4,148,196 ounces of
silver. The resource is currently being updated following a
reconnaissance geological survey, soil grid sampling, and underground
sampling from the mining area once occupied by illegal miners. This is
expected to improve the accuracy of the resource model. The Balabag NI
43-101 technical report, entitled "NI 43-101 Technical Report on the
Balabag Gold Project, Zamboanga Province, Philippines" is available on
SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on TVI's website at www.tvipacific.com.
Pilot plant test work has been continuing, as previously announced by
the Company on June 26, 2013, to confirm the results obtained in previous laboratory leaching
test, optimize the metallurgical processing under an environment that
more closely resembles actual operations, provide design parameters for
engineering, and to train personnel in operations and metallurgical
process control. Lower grade ore containing 2.7 g/t Au and 98 g/t Ag,
which more closely represents the initial mining schedule, was fed into
the pilot plant. The results confirm high extraction rates of 94% Au
and 92% Ag after 36 hours in CIL.
The Company has announced earlier also that a nonbinding term sheet was
signed with Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company to provide financing in
the form of a US $20 million term loan facility (the "Facility") and a
US $3 million Letter of Credit ("LOC"). The purpose of the Facility is
to support the development of the proposed Balabag Mine by providing
additional working capital funding for construction and commissioning
activities and to support mining and processing activities.
TVIRD continues to progress with success the critical elements to
advance the development of the Balabag project which the Company has
previously reported to include:
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a.
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The removal of all remaining illegal miners from the property in October
2012 through enforcement of the Cease and Desist Order (CDO) issued by
the DENR and the inter-agency efforts of the Provincial Government,
MGB, EMB, the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of
Investigation (NBI) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the
clean-up of mine waste and tailings left behind by the illegal miners.
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b.
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Completion of an all-weather 16km access road to the mine as part of the
pre-development work. This road will serve as the main access for
equipment and product transport.
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c.
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On-going design work on the revision of the leach circuit from
CIP-Merrill-Crowe to CIL based on the favorable test results.
Completion of plant design and equipment sizing. This was part of an
update of the internal feasibility study that was previously submitted
to the MGB.
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d.
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Confirmation of community and Local Government Units' (LGU) acceptance
and support through the continuing establishment of Community Relations
and Development Programs.
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Qualified Person
Enrico C. Nera, President and Chief Operating Officer of Minercon
International Inc., Member AusIMM, is the qualified person under NI
43-101 who has approved the scientific and technical information in
this news release.
About TVI Pacific Inc.
TVI Pacific Inc. is a Canadian resource company focused on the
production, development, exploration and acquisition of resource
projects in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. The Company produces
copper and zinc concentrates from its Canatuan mine and is advancing
its Balabag Gold-Silver project. TVI is a participant/operator in
several joint venture projects in the Philippines and Papua New Guinea
and also has an interest in an offshore Philippine oil property.
Connect with us www.tvipacific.com
Follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/tvipacific
"Like" us at www.facebook.com/tvipacific
Concurred:
(signed)
ENRICO C. NERA
ASEAN Eng, APEC Eng., MSMEP, MSME-AIME
MAusIMM, CP for Metallurgy PMRC
QP for Metallurgy
The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the
information contained herein.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain statements in this news release constitute forward-looking
information. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always,
identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan",
"continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "could",
"might", "should", "believe", "schedule" and similar expressions.
Forward-looking statements are based upon the opinions and expectations
of TVI as at the effective date of such statements and, in certain
cases, information received from or disseminated by third parties.
Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such
forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions and
that information received from or disseminated by third parties is
reliable, it can give no assurance that those expectations will prove
to have been correct. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain
risks and uncertainties (known and unknown) that could cause actual
outcomes to differ materially from those anticipated or implied. These
factors include, but are not limited to, such things as general
economic conditions in Canada, the United States, the Philippines and
elsewhere; volatility of prices for precious metals, base metals, oil
and gas; commodity supply and demand; fluctuations in currency and
interest rates; inherent risks associated with the exploration and
development of mining properties; inherent risks associated with the
exploration of oil and gas properties; ultimate recoverability of
reserves; production, timing, results and costs of exploration and
development activities; political or civil unrest; availability of
financial resources or third-party financing; new laws (domestic or
foreign); changes in administrative practices; changes in exploration
plans or budgets; and availability of personnel and equipment
(including mechanical problems). Accordingly, readers should not place
undue reliance upon the forward-looking statements contained in this
news release and such forward-looking statements should not be
interpreted or regarded as guarantees of future outcomes.
Forward-looking statements regarding expectations that the Company will
be able to find additional ore in the new permit area are based upon
current and previous exploration activities, management's experience
with other exploration programs undertaken in the Philippines and
elsewhere, management's current and previous experience with mining and
processing activities at Balabag, and the Company's overall plans,
budget and strategy (which are all subject to change).
The forward-looking statements of the Company contained in this news
release are expressly qualified, in their entirety, by this cautionary
statement. Various risks to which TVI and its affiliates are exposed in
the conduct of their business are described in detail in the Company's
Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2012, which was
filed on SEDAR on March 19, 2013, and is available at www.SEDAR.com. Subject to applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake
any obligation to publicly revise the forward-looking statements
included in this news release to reflect subsequent events or
circumstances, except as required by law.
SOURCE TVI Pacific Inc.
