The closure plan for Wallbridge Mining’s copper-PGM Broken Hammer project in Sudbury has been accepted and filed by the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines.
"We are very pleased to have received the formal acceptance and filing of the Broken Hammer mine closure plan. The closure plan is a major regulatory requirement and this acceptance and filing has brought Wallbridge's management and board of directors a major step closer to the production decision on this project," Marz Kord, president and CEO of Wallbridge, said in a news release. "We will continue our efforts to secure the remaining necessary permits as well as milling and mining contracts, in order to be able to make a final production decision."
Based on the success of a 30,000-tonne bulk sample from the Broken Hammer Zone, excavated and processed in 2011, Wallbridge completed an updated mineral resource estimate and subsequently completed a prefeasibility study in 2012 to determine the economics of the project.
The mine plan calls for production of 750 tonnes of ore per day, with an estimated 12-month mine life. Estimated capital costs are $1.9 million, with an estimated EBITDA of $8.4 million.
The prefeasibility study recommended that the project proceed to feasibility study. The feasibility study components include securing the necessary permits, a milling contract as well as securing the mining contracts before a final decision is made by Wallbridge's board of directors to proceed with the production of the Broken Hammer project.
Pursuant to the closure plan, Wallbridge Mining has placed a bond for the rehabilitation of the Broken Hammer Mine with the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines. Other environmental permit applications have also been submitted and are being reviewed by the various governmental agencies and are expected in the second quarter of 2013.
