WEATHERLY INTERNATIONAL PLC 7.00am 15th July2014
Weatherly International Plc
("Weatherly" or "the Company")
Quarterly Tschudi, Operations and Production Update
Weatherly International Plc (AIM: WTI) announces its quarterly update for its Tschudi project and the fourth quarter of the financial year ending 30 June 2014.
Highlights
· Tschudi Project on schedule and budget and approximately 57% complete.
· Tschudi mining contractor (Basil Read) mobilised in June 2014 well ahead of the original schedule.
· Central Operations delivered record results following the implementation of the Company's initiative to improve productivity and reduce operating costs.
· 4th quarter production of 1,507t of copper metal contained in concentrates, the highest quarterly result since the mines were reopened in 2011.
· The Company's unit cash cost (C1) for the quarter was US$5,710/t (US$2.59 /lb), the lowest level achieved in the last two years.
· The Company paid off US$0.55 million of the working capital loan to Orion Mine Finance and the loan has reduced to US$1.38 million.
· The Company raised £1.7 million by way of subscription of 43,300,000 new Ordinary Shares at a price of 3.95p per share.
Rod Webster CEO of Weatherly commented:
"We are delighted that our production guidance in May has been met and we expect further improvements in the next quarter as primary stoping in the Hoffnung Fault West area starts to have an impact."
"We are also extremely pleased to welcome Logiman, our engineering contractor for the Tschudi project, as a shareholder. This is a great vote of confidence in both the management and the project itself, especially given the fact that Logiman bought the shares at a significant premium to the market."
Tschudi Project
The project has made excellent progress and, as at the 30th June 2014, was approximately 57% complete. The Company has drawn down 58% of its loan from Orion Mine Finance which covers the full cost of project through to first copper.
The mining contractor, Basil Read, mobilised during the period and waste stripping is expected to commence this month well ahead of schedule. This augurs well for ensuring that the required stripping will be completed ahead of time resulting in a further de-risking of the project.
During the quarter, the Company completed recruitment of its key managerial positions for the project. The mining manager, the processing manager and the plant maintenance manager are all in place. Recruitment of the mining department's senior staff has also been completed, with the senior geologist, the senior surveyor and the senior mining engineer due to commence work in the next few weeks.
The administration and plant offices have been erected and the contractor's workshop is under construction. Earthworks are progressing as per plan, with grubbing and clearing of top soil removal now complete. Backfilling of the heap leach is 55% complete, pond excavations are 82% complete and civil works are 53% complete. The civil construction of the 66KV power yard is 95% complete and the control building is 75% complete.
Central Operations
Production
The changes made and announced last quarter are delivering the expected results. Specifically, the Company brought all mining activities in house, upgraded its maintenance program and is implementing new mining methods aimed at minimising dilution, improving safety, reducing production risks and improving costs. The Company has upgraded its mining equipment fleet with the addition of three new trucks, two new scoops and two (rebuilt) drill Jumbos.
Production results for the fourth quarter 2014 financial year are set out in the table below:
Quarter ended | Quarter ended Dec-13 | Quarter ended Mar-14 | Quarter ended Jun-2014 | |
Ore Treated (t) | 75,060 | 75,281 | 61,309 | 78,431 |
Grade (%) | 1.72 | 1.87 | 1.86 | 2.07 |
Recovery (%) | 93.02 | 93.10 | 93.36 | 93.0 |
Copper concentrate (t) | 5,118 | 5,330 | 4,424 | 6,122 |
Copper contained (t) | 1,201 | 1,311 | 1,067 | 1,507 |
The Company's 4th quarter production of 1,507 tonnes (an annualized rate of 6,028 tonnes of copper) was the highest achieved to date since the mines were reopened in 2011. Compared to the previous quarter, ore treated was up 28%, copper concentrate by 38% and copper contained by 41% respectively.
The Company's unit cash cost (C1) for the quarter was US$5,710/t (US$ 2.59/lb) which included one-off costs relating to the restructure in the previous quarter. This is the lowest cost level achieved in the last two years.
Commercial
During the quarter, the Company delivered 6,288 tonnes of concentrate (1,384 tonnes of copper) to metal trader Louis Dreyfus at a weighted average price of US$6,737/t copper (US$ 3.06/lb).
The Company raised £1.7 million by way of a placement of 43.3 million new Shares to Logiman, the engineering company constructing the Tschudi plant. The placement was made at a price of 3.95 pence per share, a premium of approximately 44% to the market price at the time of close. The purpose of the raising was to increase our working capital.
As at 30 June 2014, The Company paid off US$0.55 million of the working capital loan to Orion Mine Finance and the loan has reduced to US$1.38 million. This left the company with cash reserves, excluding drawdowns under the Orion loan, of approximately US$7.8 million.
Conference call
The Company will hold a conference call on Wednesday 16th July at 11.00 am UK time. If you would like to attend please send an email to info@weatherlyplc.com and we will send you the dial in telephone number.
About Weatherly
Weatherly is an AIM listed, copper focused mining company, the principal assets of which are located in Namibia. It currently has two producing copper mines ( Otjihase and Matchless) , and is developing the Tschudi open cut Copper Project.These assets will enable Weatherly to achieve itsmedium term strategy of establishing a copper mining business capable of sustaining approximately 25,000tpa of copper production. The Company also has a 25% stake in AIM listed company, China Africa Resources Plc (CAR), which is currently focused on the development of the lead/zinc project at Berg Aukas in Northern Namibia.
For further information please contact:
Weatherly International Plc +44 (0) 20 7917 2989
Rod Webster, CEO
Kevin Ellis, CFO & Company Secretary
RFC Ambrian Limited +44 (0) 20 3440 6800
(Nominated Adviser & Broker)
Samantha Harrison
James Biddle
Shore Capital +44 (0) 20 7408 4090
(Joint Broker)
Jerry Keen
Toby Gibbs
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