True North study confirms ‘robust, sustainable’ operation

True North Copper says it is well advanced in tendering and engaging contractors, service providers and personnel as it lays out the details of its Cloncurry mining plans. The company plans to mine 4.8Mt of ore over an initial 4.6-year mine life at its Cloncurry Copper Project (CCP), based on the Great Australia Mine and Wallace North assets at Cloncurry. But it stresses the significant potential to expand that mine life beyond current plans, with exploration ongoing and advanced projects in strategic locations surrounding the operation. Making use of existing infrastructure, the operation is expected to require a low upfront capex of $1.5 million to bring online, while peak operating expenditure is estimated at $2.2 million. The CCP mining restart study released today points to anticipated mine revenue of $367 million, with free cash flow of $111 million and a pre-tax NPV of $88 million. True North Copper managing director Marty Costello said the study confirmed a robust and sustainable mining operation with the capacity to generate substantial cash flow. "We believe our first life-of-mine plan demonstrates the project's sound economic foundations and low-risk cost profile," he said. "Our strategic partnerships, including binding offtake and toll-milling agreements with Glencore International AG, supported by debt funding secured with Nebari, underscore our operational readiness and position TNC to capitalise on what we believe is an extremely favourable copper market." The CCP incorporates four open-pit deposits including: Great Australia, Orphan Shear, Taipan and Wallace North. Mining operations will kick off at the Wallace North pit, targeting higher-grade ores (about 1 per cent copper) from surface mining. All necessary permits for mining are secured across the CCP, and the company plans to commence mining operations in 2024 and manage capacity ramp-up throughout 2025. The project's Cloncurry operations hub, located at the Great Australia Mine, includes offices along with a suite of existing infrastructure supporting current processing and the mining operations. Workforce accommodation is located in the township of Cloncurry at existing camps. True North plans to add offices and administrative infrastructure to accommodate the expanding operations. The Wallace North area has been mined previously (at Wallace South) and mine access roads exist.

True North study confirms ‘robust, sustainable’ operation

Industry Queensland

Related News

State backs Isaac Country Universities Centres

HPI animation doing the rounds for safety

Megatrends report points to mining tech revolutions

Get access to breaking mining news, now.