TIDMMIO
RNS Number : 9463W
Minco PLC
03 May 2016
Minco Plc - Annual Report & Accounts
Dublin, 3 May 2016 - Minco Plc (AIM-"MIO") (the Company), is
pleased to announce that its Annual Report and Accounts for the
year ended 31 December 2015 have been published and are being
posted to shareholders.
Copies of these documents are available on the Company's website
www.minco.ie and will also be available on request for one month
from May 6 2016, free of charge, from the Company's registered
office at 27 Lower Hatch Street, Dublin 2, Ireland.
In his Chairman's Letter to Shareholders, John F. Kearney
Chairman & Chief Executive, said:
"In 2015 Minco completed exploration drilling programs on its
lead/zinc properties at Buchans, Newfoundland and at the Pennines
in northern England with positive results. Minco also acquired
three new prospecting licences near Moate in County Westmeath,
Ireland, centered on a specific geological target identified by
Minco, with potential for zinc-lead mineralization of Tynagh Mine
type.
In Newfoundland Minco also entered into a collaboration
agreement with Canadian Zinc to undertake a research programme to
complete metallurgical studies on seven volcanogenic massive
sulphide deposits located in central Newfoundland and to share
research data on their respective deposits. The objective of the
program is to evaluate the technical and economic viability of
developing some combination of these deposits by utilizing a
central milling facility. Results to date from this research
program are encouraging.
Minco also holds a 20% interest in an Irish prospecting licence
in joint venture with Tara Boliden, adjacent to Boliden's large
Tara zinc lead mine at Navan, Ireland, a 26% interest in Xtierra
Inc., which holds zinc, lead, silver properties in Mexico, and a 2%
net smelter royalty on the Curraghinalt gold deposit in County
Tyrone, Northern Ireland, currently being explored by Dalradian
Gold.
BUCHANS LEAD-ZINC EXPLORATION
During 2015 Minco completed a drilling programme testing the
Lucky Strike South target at the old Buchans mine site in central
Newfoundland. Minco's 2015 programme was undertaken to follow up of
favourable results from drilling in 2014 and tested several
mineralized stratigraphic horizons to explore for new high-grade
massive sulphide deposits. All eight 2015 Minco holes intersected
mineralized felsic volcanic breccia ranging from 1 to 23 metres in
thickness, and containing massive sulphide and sulphide-rich clasts
measuring up to 15 centimetres in diameter.
During 2015 Minco re-logged 156 historic surface and underground
drill holes (13,418 metres) southwest of the former Lucky Strike
mine. This re-logging work focused in on a small high-grade massive
sulphide deposit known as the West Orebody deposit, with reported
base metal grades similar to Lucky Strike. Minco has planned a five
hole 2,000 metres drilling program to explore the West Orebody
deposit.
The Company's ongoing re-logging program at Buchans is currently
assessing potential targets in the vicinity of the West Orebody and
Lucky Strike deposits for discovery of additional high-grade ore
near the Company's Lundberg deposit. This program is expected to
dominate field activities in Buchans for the remainder of 2016.
METALLURGICAL STUDIES CENTRAL NEWFOUNDLAND BASE METAL
PROJECTS
In December 2015 Minco entered into a collaboration agreement
with Canadian Zinc Corporation to undertake a research programme to
complete physical and metallurgical bench scale studies on seven
volcanogenic massive sulphide ("VMS") deposits located in central
Newfoundland and to share research data on their respective central
Newfoundland Cu-Pb-Zn-Ag-Ag deposits.
The total cost of the research project is estimated at $735,000,
with the Company and Canadian Zinc each contributing up to
$100,000. The Research & Development Corporation of
Newfoundland and Labrador is providing funding of $535,000 for the
research project through the GeoEXPLORE Industry-led R & D
Technology Development and Demonstration Program.
In December of 2015 Minco completed a seven hole, 781 metre,
drilling programme at its Daniels Pond and Bobbys Pond deposits to
collect fresh rock samples for metallurgical testing. To date the
program has completed dense media separation (DMS) tests on all the
deposits and is now in the process of completing flotation tests to
determine the estimated metal recoveries. Preconcentration of the
ore by DMS (prior to flotation) was determined to be technically
viable for semi-massive and stringer sulphide samples from Minco's
Bobbys Pond and Daniels Pond deposits and initial flotation tests
indicate the deposits are amenable to a common process
flowsheet.
The bench scale testing programs will be followed-up by the
development of a process simulation and order of magnitude cost
assessment model to evaluate and identify the key factors impacting
the operating economics of a centralized milling concept for
processing the deposits.
WOODSTOCK MANGANESE PROJECT
In July 2014 Minco completed a Preliminary Economic Assessment
("PEA") of its wholly owned Woodstock electrolytic manganese metal
("EMM") project, located 5 km west of the town of Woodstock and the
junction of the Trans Canada and I-95 Highways in west-central New
Brunswick, Canada.
Given the large capital investment required to build an EMM
plant at Woodstock, Minco has focused its efforts on attracting a
development partner from one of the existing EMM producers in
China. Minco has been able to attract the attention of one of
China's largest EMM producers which recognizes the advantages
offered by the Woodstock project but has decided to postpone
evaluating the project further until EMM market conditions
improve.
MINERAL EXPLORATION AT NORTHERN PENNINES, ENGLAND
Two holes drilled on the Whitewood-Barneycraig-Williams
fault/vein structure in Northumberland in early 2015 intersected
reasonable widths of lead and zinc mineralization at three
different levels and indicate the mineral potential of this large
fault/vein structure which was previously demonstrated by historic
mining to be mineralized over a strike length of 3.5 kilometres.
Minco's 2012-2015 drill programme in the Pennines has established a
significant stratiform component to the mineralisation within the
Great Limestone which had not been previously recognised. The
extent of the stratiform mineralisation discovered by Minco in the
Great Limestone to date is encouraging.
A second phase of drilling is planned for 2016, subject to
conclusion of land access agreements, to further explore the
potential within both the Great Limestone and basal succession with
the primary target for both being the Barneycraig-Whitewood fault
complex.
LEAD-ZINC EXPLORATION, MOATE, COUNTY WESTMEATH, IRELAND
In November 2015 Minco was granted three new Prospecting
Licences by the Minister of Communications, Energy and Natural
Resources. The new licences, PLs 1228, 1229 and 3981, at Moate in
County Westmeath, are centered on a specific geological target
identified by Minco, with potential for zinc-lead mineralization of
Tynagh Mine type.
Minco's studies of previous drilling have outlined a geological
setting that Minco believes mirrors that at the former Tynagh Mine,
where zinc-lead mineralization was hosted by breccias developed at
the margin between the reef and off-reef limestone facies. Minco
has planned an initial exploration programme consisting of six
inclined drill holes for a total of 1400 metres of drilling.
XTIERRA INC.
Minco holds an approximate26% interest in Xtierra Inc.
("Xtierra"), a company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange which
holds mineral properties in the State of Zacatecas Mexico.
In December 2013, the Company agreed to provide working capital
financing to Xtierra, secured pari-passu with Pacific Road Group of
Funds. In August 2015, the Company and Pacific Road both agreed to
further extend the due dates of the Notes from 31 August 2015 to 31
January 2016, which were again extended to April 30, 2016 and to
provide further advances to fund Xtierra's property maintenance
costs and working capital. Xtierra is considering various financing
options and is engaged in discussions with its major shareholders
regarding strategic or financing Palternatives.
FINANCIAL RESULTS 2015
For the year ended December 31, 2015, Minco recorded a loss of
$118,000 compared to a loss of $2,667,000 for the year ended
December 31, 2014. The loss for 2015 included a foreign exchange
gain of $648,000. The loss for 2014 included $2,283,000 share of
loss of associate Xtierra and a foreign exchange gain of
$873,000.
During the year ended December 31, 2015 Minco invested
$1,056,000 on exploration of its mineral properties, of which the
largest amounts were expended on the Buchans zinc lead project in
central Newfoundland.
At December 31, 2015, Minco held $3,974,000 in cash and cash
equivalents and had a working capital surplus of $3,618,000,
compared to a working capital surplus of $5,497,000 at December 31,
2014. At December 31, 2015, Minco held mineral properties with a
book value of $12,341,000. The balance sheet values for these
assets may not represent that which could be obtained if the assets
were to be offered for sale.
METAL PRICES
Metal prices play an important part in the Company's ability to
finance, explore and develop its various lead-zinc projects. The
prices of zinc, lead and silver, expressed in US dollars, were
generally lower in 2015 than in 2014. Metal prices rose during the
first half of the year, but declined later in the year as economic
indicators signaled lower growth rates in China. The US dollar
strengthened significantly against most of the world's currencies
in 2015, largely due to the relatively stronger performance by the
US economy and expectations of US interest rate rises which
resulted in declining local costs in producing countries measured
in US dollars.
(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires
May 03, 2016 02:01 ET (06:01 GMT)
The International Lead and Zinc Study Group ("ILZSG") noted that
world usage of refined zinc metal is expected to increase by 3.5%
to 14.33 million tonnes in 2016, primarily driven by a further 4.5%
increase in China where demand is expected to benefit from
continued infrastructure investment. Meanwhile the ILZSG is
expecting a sharp fall in zinc mine production outside China of
9.4% due to a combination of mine closures and announced production
cutbacks. The ILZSG anticipates that global demand for refined lead
metal in 2016 will rise by 2% to 10.83 million tonnes. With the
Century mine in Australia and the Lisheen mine in Ireland now
closed, almost 1.5 billion lbs. of annual zinc production,
representing almost 5% of global mine production, has been removed
from supply. The long term outlook for both zinc and lead is
positive.
We would like to thank all Minco shareholders for their
continued support."
For further information of Minco refer to Minco's website at
www.minco.ie.
For further information, www.minco.ie or contact:
John Kearney: Chairman and Chief Executive +1 416 362 6686
Danesh Varma: CFO & Company Secretary +44 (0) 8452 606 034
Peter McParland: Director - Ireland +353 (0)46 907-3709
Warren MacLeod: Director,- President Buchans +1 709 725-0555
John Frain: (NOMAD) Davy +353 (0)1 6796363
(Corporate Advisor| Broker)
Beaufort International, London +44 (0)20 7382 8387
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
ACSSSMFWEFMSELI
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 03, 2016 02:01 ET (06:01 GMT)
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