Personal copy; not for onward transmission last year, amidst other write-downs and disposals made as its top management was replaced (MJ, July 3, 1998, p.15). BHP exits Hartley has a remaining book value of A$310 million, which now must be written off. Discussions are under way regarding Hartley the future of the Hartley project between the Government of Zimbabwe, Broken Hill Proprietary Co. Ltd unacceptable ore dilution. These BHP and Zimplats. The last-named (BHP) of Australia has reached agree- resulted in what BHP describes rather notes that it is now also free to pursue ment to sell its 67% interest in the loss- euphemistically as “financial under- Continued on p.414 making Hartley platinum project in performance”. Zimbabwe to its partner in the venture, Under the terms of the Hartley joint Zimbabwe Platinum Mines Ltd venture, BHP acted as operator and (Zimplats). BHP describes the pur- funded the US$290 million initial capi- Murrin Murrin chase price, which includes its 61.3% tal cost of the project, along with the interest in the Mhondoro platinum pro- working capital requirement. The con- gets approval ject, as “nominal”, and Zimplats puts centrator was commissioned in October the sum at “up to US$3 million”. 1996, followed by the base metals refin- The Murrin Murrin nickel-cobalt pro- Closing of the sale requires the agree- ery in June 1997. The first platinum ject in Western Australia has received ment of the Zimbabwean Government group metal concentrate was shipped the environmental go-ahead for its “on various matters”, but the govern- for toll refining in the UK in October Stage II expansion. The operation, ment has agreed to the basic deal. 1997. However, mine output reached owned 60% by Anaconda Nickel and Mining operations at Hartley are to only about one third of the planned 40% by Glencore International, is be suspended, but BHP will continue to 180,000 t/month of ore, and the work- expected to receive its Environmental provide management and funding to ing capital requirement had risen to Construction and Works Approval by place the mine and other assets on care US$143 million by this time last year the end of this month. and maintenance for a period of up to (MJ, May 29, 1998, p.423). Zimplats Stage I of the project enabled 20 months. BHP expects this to cost no elected not to pay for its share of devel- Murrin Murrin to process up to 4 Mt/y more than A$20 million. BHP’s opment costs (and would thus have of lateritic ore, producing 45,000 t/y announcement regarding its departure been entitled to receive only 9.9% of nickel and 3,000 t/y cobalt. Production from the project specifically cites any positive cash flow). commenced one month ago (MJ, May unstable ground conditions, causing BHP wrote down the value of its 14, p.356), five months behind schedule safety problems; loss of reserves; and Hartley investment by A$357 million after commissioning problems with its new pressure acid-leach (PAL) process- ing technology (MJ, March 19, p.190). The second stage will raise this capaci- ty to over 10 Mt/y of ore, yielding 115,000 t/y nickel and 9,000 t/y cobalt (MJ, August 7, 1998, p.105). Murrin Murrin has a resource of 211 Mt averaging 1.04% Ni and 0.08% Co, with a further 68 Mt of ore following the takeover of Abednego Nickel earlier JOURNAL this year (MJ, February 12, p.109). The project is one of three new nickel London, mines being developed in Western June 4, 1999 Australia which make use of the new Volume 332 PAL technology to exploit lateritic ore No. 8534 (this issue, p.423). ■ Underground stoping at the Hartley platinum mine in Zimbabwe. (Photograph courtesy of Zimplats Ltd.) Mining Week Industry in Action Technology Today Focus and Mining Finance p.413 BHP walks away from p.419 Billiton takes out base p.422 New mill drive from Comment p.427 Antamina partners Hartley; Environmental plan for metals option; Bonanza grades at ANI; Novel slag treatment p.423 Western Australia: gather cash; Novel approach for Murrin Murrin expansion Martinetas; Karelia offers PGM process; New lift for shaft nickel in a nutshell; A different Kwale funding from Tiomin; approved; Kumtor supports project; Peru to dispose of sinking; Yuasa moves into job. Codelco profit collapses, Duiker Kyrgyzstan; Spanish coal ‘aid’ Iscaycruz holding; Israel Europe; Fog cuts down dust; posts profit, Marsfontein boosts approved; EPA issues methane magnesium restructuring; Transmission system boosts Mineral markets SouthernEra; Real del Monte collection guide; Mining M&A Moroccan base metal productivity; Fuel-control system p.426 Base metals retreat faces insolvency; Reynolds starts round up. development; Akrokeri expansion; for Century. levels out; Gold slips lower; Asian on acquisition trail; Placer Rio boosts holding in coal crisis cuts into iron ore; Producer completes takeover; Orogen prospect; Unofficial action delays price proposal for cobalt. increases Porgera interest; Tin Alma; Candelaria faces removal producer realises profit from cost; Samancor to rebuild option closure. furnaces. Established 1835 ISSN 0026-5225 MINING WEEK er, and several established platinum produc- recently, the changeover is unlikely to have a BHP exits Hartley ers are known to have evaluated the project significant impact on day-to-day operations. and rejected it. Problems at Hartley have “No changes have actually taken place yet”, Continued from p. 413 been many and varied, and although some he said, “and Cameco’s master agreement is have been resolved, others remain outstand- with the Kyrgyz Government, with discussions with “third parties . to ing. One key issue is understood to be the KyrgyzAltyn holding the country’s stake in maximise the value of platinum develop- difficulty in following the payable portion of Kumtor on behalf of the government”. ment in Zimbabwe for all affected parties”. the orebody, with a consequent problem in Despite its remote location, Kumtor’s Zimplats was spun off last year by its par- maintaining the head grade. The future of production last year was achieved at a cash ent Delta Gold NL, via the distribution of the Hartley mine itself thus looks bleak. cost of US$179/oz. The open-pit operation 49% of the shares in Zimplats to sharehold- However, Zimplats appears keen to devel- is currently handling around 15,000 t/d of ers in Delta, to separate the latter’s platinum op the promising Ngezi project, and one ore, with reserves restated by Cameco at the interests in Zimbabwe from its gold assets, obvious option would be to incorporate the end of 1998 at 28.3 Mt at a grade of 4.88 g/t which are located mainly in Australia. The surface infrastructure at Hartley, in partic- gold, equivalent to 4.45 Moz. Gold recovery platinum assets include the 33% interest in ular the expensive smelting and base metal involves flotation to obtain a pyrite concen- Hartley; the Ngezi project; a 38.7% interest refining facilities. Equity investors are trate, with both the concentrate and the in the Mhondoro project; and the Selous pro- unlikely to be interested in such a high pro- flotation tailings being leached in separate ject. All of these properties lie along a rough- file loss-maker as the Hartley mine, but circuits. Bullion is smelted on-site, before ly 100 km stretch of the essentially north- they may be interested in a simpler mine, being refined at the national refinery at south running Great Dyke, just west of the such as Ngezi, if it can be demonstrated to Kara Balta, near Bishkek. capital Harare. Apart from Hartley, Ngezi is be technically sound. “Third parties”, pre- KOC is just in the process of commission- the most advanced of the projects. A feasibil- sumed to be other mining companies, may ing a US$4.5 million waste-water cyanide ity study, envisaging a surface mining opera- be similarly interested in participating in destruction plant, designed to remove any tion, is scheduled to be completed by the end Ngezi, or they may even consider using the traces of residual cyanide from tailings pond of this month (MJ, April 30, p.313). smelting facilities at Hartley to treat con- water before discharge into the Kumtor This week, Delta reiterated its intention centrates from elsewhere in the region. ■ River. It is also carrying out a major in-pit not to provide any guarantees or other forms diamond drilling programme aimed at bet- of financial support to Zimplats, consistent ter definition of ore blocks within the exist- with its strategy that the latter must oper- Kumtor: underpinning ing pit outline, and is planning further ate as an independent company. However, the Kyrgyz economy drilling outside the current pit area for later the chief operating officer of Delta, Terry this year. As Mr Homeniuk noted, “given Burgess, said at the time of the Zimplats One of the smaller of the nation states to the current gold price, reserves remain an flotation last year that a public offering emerge from the collapse of the former issue at Kumtor. However, considering the would be made some 12-18 months after- Soviet Union, mountainous Kyrgyzstan circumstances, we are in pretty good shape. wards to raise funds for projects such as achieved its independence with little in the The real challenges are the gold price and Ngezi, targeting investors in Europe and way of an economic endowment. It was a our ability to control costs”, he added. ■ South Africa. Mr Burgess said that Delta vital supplier of both antimony and mer- would not participate and would thus be cury during Soviet times, but neither com- diluted.