Valuation improves diamond estimates
| Fact File |
| Jericho's pre-feasibility resource is estimated at 2.7- million carats or $63 per tonne. Pre-feasibility was completed last year. The final feasibility study will include a revised mine model. |
| Revenue is estimated at $281 million while mine life is estimated at eight years. |
| Tahera filed the Jericho diamond project proposal along with a water permit application with the Nunavut Water Board on Nov. 26, 1999, which formally triggered the Nunavut Land Claim permitting process. |
| Discussions have been held with the Nunavut Impact Review Board in Cambridge Bay, the Nunavut Wildlife Board in Gjoa Haven, Nunavut Government's Department of Sustainable Development in Iqaluit and Kugluktuk, the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Fisheries and Oceans. |
| Other discussions have been held with Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. and the Kitikmeot Inuit Association on Inuit-owned surface rights. |
| A draft Inuit Impact Benefit Agreement has been submitted to the Kitikmeot Inuit Association. |
Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Feb 07/00) - Tahera Corp., the company aiming to mine its kimberlite pipe in Nunavut, could complete a feasibility study as early as second quarter, says Grant Ewing.
Once the feasibility study is done on Tahera's Jericho project, "We'll have a firm document for lending institutions," said Ewing, vice-president of investor relations and corporate development.
The Toronto-based company could seek debt-financing for the project.
Tahera is hoping to get the project approved in principle this June.
"The permitting process is firmly under way and we're getting good co-operation from Nunavut," he said.
Ewing said permitting should be "expeditious" because the project centres on only one land-based pipe. The Jericho pipe is on Crown land but some of the mine construction activity will be on Nunavut-controlled land.
Capital expenditures for a mine at Jericho are estimated at $40 million. That includes $14 million for a diamond-processing plant to be bought from a South African firm.
Tahera is also anticipating $6 million to $8 million in exploration, feasibility and development costs this year.
If the company is to meet its schedule, it will have to buy the diamond-processing plant later this year and ship it up the 2001 ice road.
"We would have to buy the plant by the end of 2000," Ewing said.
Tahera is proposing to build a processing plant at the Echo Bay Mines' Lupin site. Ore would be trucked across Contwoyto Lake to Lupin, located about 20 kilometres south of Jericho.
But because Jericho is land-based, water issues will be less of a factor than it has been with Diavik. Diavik, to get at its pipes, needs to dam and drain a small part of Lac de Gras.
As part of preparing for a feasibility study, Jericho had its 10,527-carat bulk sample revalued by WWW International Diamond Consultants Ltd. and SRK Consulting.
WWW valued the diamonds at $88 US a carat while SRK returned a value of $74 US. Both beat the previous $65 US figure.
Tahera will use the $74 US figure to base its cash-flow analysis of the project.
"The WWW numbers certainly provides a lot more upside to the project," Ewing said.
SRK and associate M.M. Oosterveld reviewed WWW's evaluation work. Oosterveld, a mining engineer, worked for Anglo American and for De Beers for over 30 years.
