- Metallurgical testing carried out in Canada to establish with re-development plan
Investors of liquidated BCL Mines have finalised the acquisition of Selkirk Nickel Mine near Francistown, The Business Weekly & Review has established.
The company’s CEO of Premium Nickel Resources (PNRL), Keith Morris, has indicated that the acquisition of the nickel, copper, cobalt, platinum-group elements Selkirk Mine in Botswana includes associated infrastructure and four surrounding prospecting licences formerly operated by Tati Nickel Mining Company (TNMC).
The acquisition was completed pursuant to the company’s previously-announced asset purchase agreement with the Liquidator of TNMC. With the acquisition now completed, ownership of the Selkirk Mine has been transferred to PRNL. PRNL began comprehensive due diligence programmes on Selkirk Mine in 2020 and has since continued to verify old data and collect new data, including completion of a ‘concept-level’ metallurgical study. The company said the metallurgical testing carried out at SGS Lakefield, Ontario, Canada will help to establish its re-development plan to produce separate copper and nickel-cobalt concentrates.
Morrison said completing the transfer of ownership of Selkirk Mine concludes PNRL’s announced asset purchases with the Liquidator of TNMC in Botswana. He added that on a voluntary basis, PNRL will move forward with completing its initial technical report on Selkirk and the surrounding prospecting licences. “Concurrently, we will prioritise the preparation and exploration requirements that will support our proposed redevelopment plans for new modern operations with state-of-the-art processing and tailings management facilities,” said Morrison.
“The re-development plan will encompass modern best practices, using less power, less water and assuming conservative commodity prices.” Selkirk Mine is situated 28 kilometres south-east of Francistown and 75 kilometres north of the 100 percent owned Selebi Mines. The Selkirk mining licence covers approximately 14.6 square kilometres and the four prospecting licences cover 126.7 square kilometres.
Production at Selkirk Mine took place between 1989 and 2002 with Anglo American mining high grade Ni-Cu massive sulphides and producing 1 million tonnes at 2.6 percent Ni and 1.5 percent Cu. Thereafter, in 2006, LionOre Mining International Ltd published a technical report in accordance with NI 43-101, which reported a historic indicated mineral resource estimate of 6.0 Mt grading 1.06 percent nickel and 0.36 percent copper at a cutoff grade of 0.75 percent Ni.
The technical report entitled “A Preliminary Assessment and Techno-Economic Analysis of the Requirements for the Establishment of a Nickel Mining & Processing Facility at the ‘Selkirk Project’ Situated on the Farms 73NQ and 75 NQ in NE Botswana, Mineral Properties and Prospects Held by LionOre” with an effective date of September 21, 2006 (the “Historic Selkirk MRE”) was prepared for LionOre by TMP Consulting (PTY) Ltd. The former operator acquired Selkirk from Norilsk Nickel through a purchase agreement in October 2014. Norilsk was preparing Selkirk as an open pit operation and had completed Definitive Feasibility Studies in 2012 and 2013 (Norilsk Nickel Annual Reports).
PNRL said it intends to complete a technical report in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101) to advance its understanding of the Selkirk property. The company said following the completion of the technical report, it currently anticipates that a workplan will be proposed for Selkirk Mine re-development that will include drilling to better define the existing resources and search for additional resources, develop a 3D geological and structural model, and complete additional metallurgical studies.
