Following a positive feasibility study, establishment of a joint venture, signing of an offtake agreement and a successful mining trial, BC Iron is well on track to begin mining at its Nullagine Project in Western Australia’s Pilbara region later this year.
A 50:50 joint venture with eastern Pilbara neighbour Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) has provided access to vital rail and port infrastructure while a finance and offtake deal with Hong Kong-based Henghou Industries metal trading group has secured funds to help bring the project to fruition as well as giving certainty into the future.
BC Iron’s managing director Mike Young says the boxes are rapidly being ticked to enable production to begin in August.
It has been a relatively fast track towards production, which Mike Young says is primarily due to the focus of the company and its team.
“When we listed in 2006 we had no office and I was the only employee. We started very small but have always been very focused.
“I knew success depended on getting access to infrastructure so one of the first phone calls was to FMG which had projects in the area. We began a relationship which has obviously flourished.
“We then went through available information, carried out heritage surveys and employed a field assistant. We secured drilling companies, established an office and found excellent people.
“We started drilling in April 2007 and within a month my background as a resource geologist told me that we had a deposit, that it was direct shipping ore (DSO) and I was pretty sure we could mine it successfully.
“The focus of the company wasn’t about picking up acreage and undertaking broad-scale exploration, it was about resource definition and mining as soon as possible.
“So for the next few years we drilled Nullagine to feasibility study standard, established ore reserves, continued discussions with FMG and raised funds. In August 2009 we secured the FMG joint venture and rail haul agreement and in November 2009 we secured a project finance deal with Henghou.”
Nullagine is a high quality, DSO deposit with ore reserves of 36 million tonnes @ 57% iron. The ore can be mined simply using surface miners excavating shallow pits primarily above the surrounding plains. It can be mined from day one of operations and is above the water table, which means lower environmental impact.
The feasibility recommends start-up at an annual rate of 3 million tonnes with simple in-pit crushing and screening, ramping up to 5 million tonnes with fixed plant crushing and screening.
Mike Young says a key factor for BC Iron has been getting key personnel and those that have come on board have shared the focus. “They all see the dream and the vision, all work hard and are aligned with what we are trying to achieve.
“Part of the process was getting FMG over the line with key factors being delivery of the feasibility study and the quality of the study. We actually did it in house. We went to consultants for major components but the study was written and collated in house by our chief operating officer Blair Duncan. As a consultant I’ve been associated with a lot of feasibility studies but I was so proud of the detail and quality of ours that I had everyone involved sign my copy.
“One of its major recommendations was to conduct a trial mine to test the innovative mining techniques and to prove the quality of the ore. FMG was pleased with this because although we had a resource model they wanted to see what the product would be like.
“The test pit and trial mine pretty much surpassed all our expectations. Blair Duncan had made a lot of robust assumptions in the study and we had done some test work but we had nothing concrete in terms of the surface miners because they are relatively new. The pit was a success, proving all assumptions and showing the model was accurate, if not conservative. More importantly, it demonstrated to FMG that we were capable of performing at a very high standard.
“It confirmed that surface miners are suitable to mine Nullagine ore, production rates were better than estimates in the study, the actual tonnes and grades were 113% of the predicted model, and it showed that the DSO only required simple crushing and screening.
“The type of ore is pisolite, which is the same as Yandicoogina and Robe River except the quality is better than the latter and some elements are better than the former. It has very good physical qualities in the steel mill and has very low phosphorous levels. In fact, as far as we know, it is the world’s lowest DSO phosphorous ore.
“When we did the joint venture there were people who thought we’d given away half a mine but the way I look at it is we didn’t have a reserve until we had an infrastructure outcome. All we had was a pile of dirt in the Pilbara but once we signed the JV with FMG, we had an ore reserve. The JV also enables us to look confidently at growth and is a stepping stone to achieve this aim.
“You can burn a lot of money exploring for years and find nothing. We have a mine which we are getting into production to get cashflow going and then go out and acquire and grow. It’s not a matter of if we are going to be mining, it is a matter of when.
“Ahead of us immediately we have months of approvals and construction. We have reached compensation agreements with the pastoralists, are very close to signing off on the native title agreement and are moving forward with the mine plan which will go to the Department of Mines soon.
“We have reached terms and are about to sign off on the mining agreement with the local Aboriginal groups who have been wonderful to work with. We have a really positive and constructive relationship with them. They came into our discussions pretty open minded, as we did with them. 
“We’ve also let the contract for the camp and accommodation units for the first stage exploration camp are being built. We expect to let the haul road construction contract shortly and this will begin in May, and we expect to commence mining in August with road haulage to begin in October/November and the first shipment of ore in December.
“We are also starting to look at other projects. We have an inordinate amount of iron ore experience, with some of us having worked in iron ore before, we understand what it takes and understand that infrastructure is the key. Anyone who hasn’t got their ducks in a row with infrastructure is going to be struggling.”
For information contact BC Iron on +61 8 6311 3400 or visit www.bciron.com.au

BC铁矿公司Nullagine项目万事俱备

继可行性报告得出积极结论、合资项目建立、签署包销协议以及试开采成功之后，BC铁矿公司在位于西澳大利亚州皮尔巴拉地区的Nullagine项目上进展顺利，今年晚些时候将开始开采。
BC铁矿公司已与位于东皮尔巴拉地区的邻居FMG集团（Fortescue Metals Group）成立了一个50:50的合资项目。合资项目的建立使得BC铁矿公司能够使用至关重要的铁路和港口设施。此外，公司还与设在香港的金属贸易集团Henghou实业进行了融资及包销交易，这将使项目成功得到开发，并提供了未来产品销路的确定性。
BC铁矿公司的董事总经理Mike Young说，一项项条件正迅速得到满足，使得生产在8月份就可以开始。
通往生产的进程推进得较为迅速。Mike Young说，这主要是由于公司及其团队始终咬定目标。
他说：“我们于2006年上市时，公司没有办公室，我是唯一的员工。开始的时候我们规模很小，但我们始终坚持咬定目标。
 “我知道要想成功必须能够使用基础设施，因此我们所打的第一批电话中就有给FMG集团的，因为FMG在这一区域有项目。我们培育的这个关系显然发展得很好。
 “然后我们仔细研究现有信息，进行了人类遗产勘查，并聘请了一位现场助理。我们找到了钻探公司，建了办公室，并聘请了优秀的员工。
        “我们在2007年4月开始钻探，在一个月之内，我作为一个资源地质师的背景就告诉我，我们发现直运铁矿石（DSO）矿床了，并且我非常确信我们会成功进行开采。
        “当时公司的重点并非挑选出更大面积的勘探区域、进行大规模的勘探，而是界定并尽可能快地开采资源。
        “因此其后几年我们以可行性研究的标准对Nullagine进行了钻探，确定了矿石储量，继续和FMG集团磋商，并且进行融资。在2009年8月我们成功地建立了与FMG的合资项目，签署了铁路运输协议。2009年11月我们与Henghou公司进行了项目融资交易。”
        Nullagine项目是一个高品质的直运铁矿石矿，矿石储量为3600万吨，含铁57%。矿石可以使用露天采剥机实施较浅的露天开采，而矿坑位置基本上高于周围的平原。这个项目从采矿运营第一天开始就可以进行开采，并且它的位置在地下水位之上，这意味着它对环境造成的影响较小。
        可行性研究报告建议，开始时以300万吨/年的产率进行生产，先直接在矿坑内破碎和筛分，在固定的破碎筛分设施安装好后将产能提升到500万吨/年。
        Mike Young表示，对于BC铁矿公司来说，一个关键的因素是获得关键的人员，而那些已经加入到我们团队的员工都以此为重。“他们都看到这个梦想和前景，都努力工作，全神贯注于要实现的目标。”
        “项目进程的一部分是使得FMG参与进来，其中关键的因素是提交可行性研究以及它的质量。这个工作实际上是由我们自己完成的。在主要部分上我们找了顾问公司，但研究报告是由我们的首席营运官Blair Duncan撰写并整理。我曾经作为顾问参与过很多的可行性研究，但对于我们这份报告的详尽程度和质量我充满自豪，因此我让所有参加这项工作的人员都在我那份报告上签了名。
        “可行性研究中一个重要的建议是进行采矿试验，以测试新的开采工艺并检验矿石质量。FMG集团对此也非常高兴，因为虽然我们有资源模型，但他们还是想看看产品究竟如何。
        “测试矿坑和试验矿都超出了我们的预期。之前Blair Duncan在研究报告中作了很多很积极的假定，我们也做了一些测试工作，但我们在露天采剥机方面并没有具体的数据，因为它们相对较为新式。矿坑测试取得了成功，证实了所有的假定，表明模型相当准确，甚至有些保守。更重要的是，它向FMG展示，我们有能力以很高的标准开展工作。
        “它证明了露天采剥机适合开采Nullagine的矿石，生产率比研究报告中估计的还要好，实际吨数和品位超过预测模型13%。此外，它还显示直运铁矿石只需要简单的破碎筛分。
        “Nullagine的矿石和Yandicoogina矿以及Robe 河矿一样，都属于豆石矿类型，而且质量比Robe 河矿更好，一些元素的指标比Yandicoogina矿要好。它在钢铁厂表现出的物理性质非常出色，含磷量极低。事实上就我们所知，它是世界上含磷最低的直运铁矿石。
        “当我们建合资项目时，有人认为我们把矿山的一半给了FMG，但我的看法是，在获得基础设施使用权之前都不能算拥有这个矿。我们之前所拥有的只是皮尔巴拉地区的一堆土，而一旦我们和FMG签了协议建合资项目后，我们就拥有了矿石储量。这项合资也让我们可以充满信心地看它发展，它是我们实现目标的垫脚石。
        “你可能勘探多年，烧钱无数，但一无所获。我们有一个正将投产的矿，可以带来现金流，然后再向外拓展、收购其它项目并发展壮大。现在的问题并不是我们是否会开采，而是我们何时进行开采。
        “我们目前马上要做的是为期数月的批文和建设。我们已经和牧场主达成了补偿协议，原住民土地权协定也已接近签署，开采计划正在积极推进中，即将提交给矿产部。
        “我们和当地土著居民团体的开采协议条款已经议定，协议即将签署；这些土著居民和我们合作得非常愉快。我们跟他们建立了非常积极并具建设性的关系。他们在谈判时思路很开放，这点和我们一样。
        “我们还签署了营地建造合同，而且用于第一阶段勘探的营地居住单元也在建造中。我们预计近期将签署运输道路的建设合同，开工将是在5月份。预计8月份将开始采矿，10月或11月份将开始公路运输，第一批铁矿石装船发货将在12月份。
        “我们也开始注意其他的项目。在铁矿石方面我们有大量的经验，我们中有一些人曾在铁矿石行业工作过，我们明白其要素是什么，我们也明白基础设施是关键。任何铁矿石公司如果没有将基础设施安排好，那他们的日子将会很难过。”
　　欲知更多信息请致电+61 8 6311 3400联系BC铁矿公司，或访问公司主页www.bciron.com.au