Fairfax says resource increase at Discovery Metals' Boseto copper mine supports project value

Fairfax has issued a note on Discovery Metals (AIM: DME; ASX: DML) after the Botswana operating nickel and copper miner reported a resource increase at it flagship Boseto copper project.

The resource at Boseto was upped 68% to 102.8 Mt (million tonnes) grading 1.4% copper and 17.3 g/t (grammes per tonne) silver taking total contained copper to 1.422 Mt. Measured and indicated mineral resources are up by 92% to 22.5 Mt at 1.5% copper and 18.7 g/t silver. Inferred resources stand at 80.3 Mt at 1.4% copper and 16.9 g/t silver. In October, the mineral resource at Boseto stood at 11.7 Mt at 1.5% copper and 22.9 g/t silver measured and indicated, with inferred of 60.4 Mt at 1.4% copper and 19.5 g/t silver.

The broker called the news “more than justifying” the value of US$20 million it attributed for exploration potential in addition to the Net Present Value (NPV) of the Boseto mine, whose development will be finalised with the completion of the review of BFS (bankable feasibility study) technical studies.

The report said that the increase in the resource base and the underground potential pointed to a larger operation than the planned 2 Mtpa (million tonnes per annum) concentrator producing 25 ktpa (kilo tonnes per annum) of copper in concentrate. The company also plans to investigate a 3 Mtpa operation, which Fairfax said would not affect the development of the current plan.

Fairfax said that the latest update reinforced its confidence that Boseto can evolve into a mid tier copper mine and that it expected the potential to expand to 3 Mtpa.

http://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/6270/fairfax-says-resource-increase-at-discovery-metals-boseto-copper-mine-supports-project-value-6270.html