VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - March 29, 2016) -
Excelsior Mining Corp.
(TSX VENTURE: MIN) (FRANKFURT: 3XS) (OTCQX: EXMGF) ("Excelsior" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce that it has filed a National Instrument ("NI") 43-101 Technical Report dated effective January 28, 2016 on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The Report is with respect to Excelsior's Updated Prefeasibility Study ("Updated PFS") on the Gunnison Copper Project in southern Arizona; the results of which were originally announced in a February 9, 2016 news release.
The Updated PFS was completed as a result of the recent acquisition of the Johnson Camp Mine ("JCM") and staged production approach which have dramatically lowered initial capital costs to $45.9 million.
Commenting on the filing of the Updated PFS, Stephen Twyerould, President & CEO said, "The Updated Prefeasibility report represents another major milestone for Excelsior as we continue to advance the Gunnison Copper Project. By combining the assets of our recent JCM acquisition with the exceptional economics and our ISR copper project, we have demonstrated once again the value created by management and our excellent technical team. This same high level of technical acumen will now be applied to the completion of the Feasibility Study, which will be finalized before year-end."
Updated Prefeasibility Study Results
Highlights of the North Star Gunnison Copper Project Updated PFS (United States dollars)
- Net Present Value ("NPV") of $1.2 billion pre-tax and $829 million post-tax
- at 7.5% discount rate using a life of mine ("LOM") copper price of $2.75/lb;
- Internal Rate of Return ("IRR") of 57.9% pre-tax and 45.8% post-tax;
- Initial construction capital costs of $45.9 million
- includes 20% contingency, 16% EPCM, freight, mobile equipment, owner's costs and capital spares;
- Payback period for initial capital of 1.8 years pre-tax and 2.6 years post-tax;
- Average life-of-mine operating costs of $0.70/lb;
- All-In Cost (all capital plus operating costs) of $1.24/lb;
- Over 850 million pounds of copper added to the probable mineral reserve, an increase of 24%; total probable reserve now 4.4 billion pounds (775 million short tons grading 0.29%);
- Mine life of 27 years (24 years of commercial production);
- Staged production profile: initial production rate of 25 million pounds of copper cathode per annum using the existing JCM facilities, followed by an intermediate expansion stage to 75 million pounds per annum and final expansion stage to full production of 125 million pounds per annum (includes the construction of an acid plant at full production). The staged production profile makes possible the funding of future expansions out of cash flow;
- Staged production approach lowers initial capital costs, reduces financing risk and speeds the timeline to first production.
Qualified Person
Excelsior's technical work on the Gunnison Copper Project is supervised by Stephen Twyerould, Fellow of AUSIMM, President & CEO of Excelsior and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Twyerould has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.
About Excelsior Mining
Excelsior is a mineral exploration and development company that is advancing the Gunnison Copper Project. The Excelsior management team consists of experienced professionals with proven track records of advancing mining projects into production.
Further information about the Gunnison Copper Project can be found in the technical report filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com entitled: "Gunnison Copper Project, NI 43-101 Technical Report, Prefeasibility Study Update" dated effective January 28, 2016.
For more information on Excelsior, please visit our website at www.excelsiormining.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE EXCELSIOR BOARD
Stephen Twyerould,
President & CEO
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains "forward-looking information" concerning anticipated developments and events that may occur in the future. Forward looking information contained in this news release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to: (i) the technical viability of the Gunnison Project; (ii) the market and future price of copper; (iii) the results of the Updated PFS including statements about future production, future operating and capital costs, the projected IRR, NPV, payback period, construction timelines, permit timelines and production timelines for the Gunnison Project,; and (iv) the ability to mine the Gunnison Project using in-situ recovery mining techniques.
In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the estimation of mineral resources and mineral reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, copper and other metal prices, the timing and amount of future exploration and development expenditures, the estimation of initial and sustaining capital requirements, the estimation of labour and operating costs, the availability of necessary financing and materials to continue to explore and develop the Gunnison Project in the short and long-term, the progress of exploration and development activities, the receipt of necessary regulatory approvals, the completion of the permitting process, the estimation of insurance coverage, and assumptions with respect to currency fluctuations, environmental risks, title disputes or claims, and other similar matters. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.
Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks inherent in the exploration and development of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters as plans continue to be redefined including the possibility that mining operations may not commence at the Gunnison Project, risks relating to variations in mineral resources and reserves, grade or recovery rates resulting from current exploration and development activities, risks relating to the ability to access infrastructure, risks relating to changes in copper and other commodity prices and the worldwide demand for and supply of copper and related products, risks related to increased competition in the market for copper and related products and in the mining industry generally, risks related to current global financial conditions, uncertainties inherent in the estimation of mineral resources, access and supply risks, reliance on key personnel, operational risks inherent in the conduct of mining activities, including the risk of accidents, labour disputes, increases in capital and operating costs and the risk of delays or increased costs that might be encountered during the development process, regulatory risks, including risks relating to the acquisition of the necessary licenses and permits, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks, including the risk that the financing necessary to fund the exploration and development activities at the Gunnison Project may not be available on satisfactory terms, or at all, risks related to disputes concerning property titles and interest, environmental risks and the additional risks identified in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's reports and filings with applicable Canadian securities regulators.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release, and no securities regulatory authority has either approved or disapproved of the contents of this release.