Glencore deal brings $21m early payday for Austral
By Industry Queensland
Austral Resources has secured a deal to supply Glencore with up to 40,000 tonnes of copper cathode from its new Anthill operation, and snared $21 million in cash upfront.
The $21 million pre-payment allows Austral to fast-track exploration and development activities at the North-West Queensland site through 2022.
Austral said the offtake agreement with Glencore followed negotiations with several parties eager to secure the rights to Anthill copper production and obtain an option to participate in the company’s growth potential.
Chief Executive Officer Steve Tambanis said the $21 million pre-payment provided a solid financial buffer for Anthill’s start-up phase over the next five months.
“Glencore underwent a lengthy due diligence process to assess our production capabilities and is pleased with the high quality of Austral’s copper cathode,” he said.
“Going forward, there is potential to review other copper development opportunities in the region.
“Austral is on track to achieve a planned copper production rate of 10,000tpa from mid-2022 for a four-year period.
“Exploration and development activities are being significantly expanded with the intention of fast-tracking discoveries.”
Offtake is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2022 and the $21 million pre-payment facility will be repayable over two years from late 2022.
David Kelly from Glencore Copper Marketing, Australia said the company welcomed the opportunity to support Australian miners like Austral Resourcesdby marketing their copper products to customers all over the world where it would be used to make everything from smart phones to solar panels.
Overburden mining started last month at the new operation – about 80km north-west of Mount Isa – with Thiess, Roc-Drill and Orica coordinating their respective mining, drilling and blasting activities.
Austral recently shared news that blasthole drilling on January 26 exposed the first copper ore at the top of the east pit orebodymMining activity kicked off at the Anthill site, about 80km north-west of Mount Isa, last month.
