[miningmx.com] — JSE and AIM-listed Jubilee Platinum said on Wednesday its new ConRoast commercial facility is on track to commence smelting in the second quarter of 2011.
Releasing a management update, Jubilee said the completion of the detailed engineering and design of the ConRoast facility was scheduled before end-2010.
“All long lead times have been identified with the furnace outer shell and electrical transformer being critical path items, commitments for which are expected by year-end,’ read the statement.
“Smelting of platinum concentrates and ramp-up of the project is projected to commence during the second quarter of 2011.’
The location of the previous ConRoast demonstration furnace within a research and development environment restricted Jubilee’s ability to operate the furnace as a commercial entity, due to the research establishment’s high fixed cost structure.
“The new ConRoast facility’s operating cost structure should potentially benefit markedly from being located within an existing industrial smelting infrastructure at Middelburg.’
The group also said the completion of a review for providing a dedicated smelter for Northam’s Booysendal project was scheduled for the first three months of 2011.
As for its Middelburg ferro-alloy smelting plant, Jubilee said the beefed-up management team of the Middelburg smelting plant has been successful in attracting profitable smelting contracts.
“Although not the core reason for the acquisition by Jubilee, the existing alloy smelting facility is targeted to be profitable by the end of November 2010,’ read the statement.
TJATE UPDATE
Jubilee’s Tjate pre-feasibility drilling, which commenced in July, is more than 90% complete and is expected to finish before end-2010.
“The objective of the Phase 1 drilling is to provide reef continuity information, which not only will facilitate the planning of borehole spacing for the next phase 2 of infill drilling for upgrading the currently inferred resource, but also may allow upgrading of currently inferred areas without a great deal of infill drilling,’ read the statement.
The company has completed an environmental (winter phase) and social baseline study for the project. The next phase of the feasibility study will include recommended further on-going environmental studies during pre-feasibility, the ecology part of which is only possible during the wet/summer months.’
