TIDMBKY
RNS Number : 0567D
Berkeley Energia Limited
24 April 2017
BERKELEY ENERGIA LIMITED
NEWS RELEASE | 24 April 2017 | AIM/ASX: BKY
Pre-construction activities advancing at Berkeley Energia's
Salamanca mine
Berkeley Energia is pleased to announce that the
pre-construction site based activities are advancing at its 100%
owned Salamanca mine located in a historic mining region in western
Spain.
Work on the ground in preparation for the commencement of
construction has progressed well with over 600 hectares acquired or
leased to date under the land acquisition programme and with only a
few hectares remaining to be acquired.
The road deviation is advancing and the new road will be ready
for use in the European summer. The equipment procurement for the
electrical power line has been completed and the upgrade to the
existing line will commence once the road construction is
complete.
The crushing circuit, screens, feeders and ancillary equipment
are currently being fabricated by established equipment suppliers,
Sandvik in Finland and Vibramech in South Africa.
The Company has entered into a preliminary agreement with
Asturiana de Zinc SAU, a Glencore company, to supply locally
sourced reagent from 2018 to 2021 at a cost substantially below the
one estimated in the Definitive Feasibility Study. These reagent
costs represent approximately 30% of the overall process operating
costs.
In addition, the Company has now received final proposals from a
number of experienced and reputable mining contractors and has been
pleased with the highly competitive nature of the bids
received.
The Company is building a successful track record of cost
optimisation, the order of the first major items for the crushing
circuit, placed in December last year, was more than 20% below
estimates from the Definitive Feasibility Study.
The Company will continue to pursue cost optimisation
opportunities as it proceeds towards production to ensure that the
Salamanca mine establishes itself at the bottom of the cost curve
in terms of capital and operating costs once in production.
The Company holds itself to the highest standards and its
commitment to environmental excellence is evidence of this. The
Environmental License and the Environmental Measures Plan detail
that the Company will plant 30,000 young oak trees, a six-fold
increase on the number of older trees being cleared, greatly
improving the ecological and agricultural value of the area.
This reforestation has now commenced following an agreement with
the highly supportive local municipality of Vitigudino which
details the arrangements for planting 20,000 young oak trees over a
50 hectare plot.
Commenting on the progress of the Salamanca mine, Managing
Director Paul Atherley, stated:
"Since our oversubscribed institutional fundraise late last
year, we have been delivering on the site-based activities leading
up to the main construction, which we expect will commence later in
the year.
We now have over 50 staff and contractors on site and are
continuing to take on more staff from those local people who have
attended our skills training courses as construction commences.
Our continued operating and capital cost optimisation moves us
closer to establishing Salamanca as a reliable low cost supplier to
global utilities from the heart of the Europe Union.
Euratom has welcomed the security of supply Salamanca brings to
the European Community which generates over 25% of its electricity
from nuclear power.
The European nuclear trade body Foratom has described nuclear
power as indispensable to the EU's aim to decarbonise the economy
by more than 80% by 2050."
For further information please contact:
Berkeley Energia Limited +44 20 7478 3900
Paul Atherley, Managing Director info@berkeleyenergia.com
Hugo Schumann, Corporate Manager
Peel Hunt LLP (Joint Broker) +44 20 7418 8900
Matthew Armitt
Ross Allister
Chris Burrows
WH Ireland Limited (Nominated
Adviser) +44 20 7220 1666
Paul Shackleton
Nick Prowting
Jay Ashfield
Buchanan +44 207 466 5000
Bobby Morse, Senior Partner BKY@buchanan.uk.com
Anna Michniewicz, Account Director
About Berkeley Energia:
Berkeley Energia's objective is to be one of the world's lowest
cost producers reliably supplying the world's leading utilities
with fuel for base load clean energy from the heart of the European
Union. Once in production the mine will be one of the world's
biggest producers supplying over four million pounds of uranium
concentrate a year, equivalent to approximately 10% of the
continent's total requirement.
An independent study published in July 2016 by MDM Engineering
(part of AMEC Foster Wheeler Group) reported that the project has
an NPV of over US$530 million and will produce 4.4 million pounds
of uranium per annum at a cash costs of US$15.39 per pound, making
it one of the world's lowest cost and a top ten global producer of
uranium.
The mine will rejuvenate a community suffering from lack of
investment and badly hit by long-term and high youth unemployment.
Last year over 25,000 people left the Castilla y Leon region and in
many villages houses stand empty.
Skills training programmes commenced last year and will continue
throughout the construction phase to equip locals for the 454 jobs
the mine will create once in full production. In addition, it has
been estimated that over time the mine will indirectly generate an
estimated further 2,295 jobs in the region. Local businesses are
being prioritized and the local municipalities and communities will
be fully supported throughout the life of the mine.
Spain currently is currently generating around 20% of its
electricity from seven nuclear power plants and is aiming to meet
its long term carbon reduction targets with a combination of a
nuclear zero carbon base load and renewables.
Competent Persons Statement
The information in this announcement that relates to the
Definitive Feasibility Study, Mineral Resources for Zona 7, Ore
Reserve Estimates, Mining, Uranium Preparation, Infrastructure,
Production Targets and Cost Estimation is extracted from the
announcement entitled 'Study confirms the Salamanca project as one
of the world's lowest cost uranium producers' dated 14 July 2016,
which is available to view on Berkeley's Energia Limited (Berkeley)
website at www.berkeleyenergia.com.
Berkeley confirms that: a) it is not aware of any new
information or data that materially affects the information
included in the original announcement; b) all material assumptions
and technical parameters underpinning the Mineral Resources, Ore
Reserve Estimate, Production Target, and related forecast financial
information derived from the Production Target included in the
original announcement continue to apply and have not materially
changed; and c) the form and context in which the relevant
Competent Persons' findings are presented in this announcement have
not been materially modified from the original announcements.
The information in the original announcement that relates to the
Definitive Feasibility Study is based on, and fairly represents,
information compiled or reviewed by Mr. Mr Jeffrey Peter Stevens, a
Competent Person who is a Member of The Southern African Institute
of Mining & Metallurgy, a 'Recognised Professional
Organisation' (RPO) included in a list posted on the ASX website
from time to time. Mr. Stevens is employed by MDM Engineering (part
of the Amec Foster Wheeler Group). Mr. Stevens has sufficient
experience that is relevant to the style of mineralization and type
of deposit under consideration and to the activity being undertaken
to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of
the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results,
Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves'.
The information in the original announcement that relates to the
Ore Reserve Estimates, Mining, Uranium Preparation, Infrastructure,
Production Targets and Cost Estimation is based on, and fairly
represents, information compiled or reviewed by Mr. Andrew David
Pooley, a Competent Person who is a Member of The Southern African
Institute of Mining and Metallurgy', a Recognised Professional
Organisation' (RPO) included in a list posted on the ASX website
from time to time. Mr. Pooley is employed by Bara Consulting (Pty)
Ltd. Mr. Pooley has sufficient experience that is relevant to the
style of mineralization and type of deposit under consideration and
to the activity being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person
as defined in the 2012 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for
Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore
Reserves'.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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