Ivernia boosts resources at Aussie lead mine

Vancouver Recent infill drilling by Ivernia (IVW-T) has boosted resources at the company’s new, wholly owned Magellan lead mine, situated 750 km northeast of Perth in western Australia.

At year-end 2005, after the first year of mining, measured and indicated resources had increased to 21.4 million tonnes grading 5.8% lead from 18.6 million tonnes of 5.9% lead a year earlier. Inferred resources add another 7.2 million tonnes at 4.6% lead. These estimates are based on a 2.5% lead cutoff grade, and a lead price of US$750 per tonne.

The newly updated measured and indicated resources are within the Magellan, Cano and Pinzon deposits, while the inferred resource also includes tonnage from the Drake deposit. The largest deposit is Magellan, which hosts a measured and indicated resource of 13.9 million tonnes at 6% lead.

The latest resource estimates were made after mining of about 1.23 million tonnes grading 5.9% lead, containing 0.07 million tonnes of the heavy metal. The company notes that “significant potential” for resource expansion exists near the mine-site and in the surrounding land package. The bulk of drilling this year will be directed at areas with the best potential for expansion of resources and reserves. A number of exploration targets will also be tested in the coming year.

Ivernia spent between A$40-A$50 million to develop the 4,100-tonne-per-day mine and conventional flotation mill at Magellan. The mine began production in early 2005, and was officially opened in early October. The operation is expected to produce about 100,000 tonnes of lead annually, or about 3% of total world production, once it achieves full production levels in mid-2006.