|
Dear Karolina Domenech, |
February 4, 2009 |
SULPHIDE PROJECT UPDATE:
TVI PACIFIC PROVIDES UPDATE ON COMMISSIONING ACTIVITIES FOR CANATUAN SULPHIDE PROJECT
TVI Pacific Inc (TSX: "TVI" or the "Company") today provided an update on commissioning activities at the Canatuan Mine, which is located in Southern Philippines and operated by the Company's affiliate, TVI Resource Development (Phils.) Inc. ("TVIRD").
Certain statements in this News Release constitute forward-looking statements, including statements respecting the anticipated timing of commencement, completion or commissioning of various components of the Sulphide Project. Readers should refer to the cautionary statement that appears at the end of this News Release.
Commissioning Activities Continue
The Company reports that commissioning activity, which began after project start-up in mid-November, continues at TVIRD's copper-zinc flotation plant, which is designed to process ore from the lower, sulphide portion of the volcanogenic massive sulphide deposit located at Canatuan. Commissioning activities for operations of a similar size generally last between three to six months, as operators attempt to achieve optimal levels of production. The sulphide portion of the ore body underlies the oxidized, gossan zone that was previously mined at the Canatuan site. This news release should be read in conjunction with the Company's prior update announcing the commencement of Sulphide Project operations, which was disseminated on November 17, 2008, and is available at http://www.tvipacific.com/.
Recent activity highlights for the Sulphide Project include the following:
- Overall Project Activity -
- Construction of the overall plant is now completed except for the sulphide dam, which is expected to be built progressively in stages.
- The primary focus in recent weeks has been on plant optimization and metallurgical performance, with the plant recovery improving as TVIRD personnel have developed systems to manage the behaviour of the complex ore being treated.
- Conducted a geological review of the ore body to better define ore-type contacts, which is important in predicting ore feed quality. Blending strategies and procedures have been refined, resulting in improved metallurgical performance in the mill. Improved geological grade control procedures have been developed and have been implemented.
- As of January 31, 2009, 2,174 metric tons of concentrate had been produced in connection with on-going plant commissioning and optimization.
Figure 1: First product produced from the sulphide plant
- Mining Operations -
- Drilling and blasting operations commenced during the week of December 15th, 2008, and these operations continue on a regular basis. Directed drilling is also being undertaken as part of the grade control process for better selectivity during mining.
- Grade control procedures and inter-departmental (mine and mill) production planning and grade control have been strengthened with the availability of additional information from blast hole drilling.
Figure 2: View of the completed sulphide plant
- Crushing Circuit -
- Grinding Circuit -
- Flotation Circuit -
- Operating.
- Additional piping circuits were installed to allow flexibility in re-directing pulp and froth flows depending on the performance of the flotation circuit. There is now a high degree of flexibility in handling froths and concentrate product which has contributed to better recovery performance at the plant.
Figure 3: The cleaner flotation cells
- Filter Press and Concentrate House -
Figure 4: Loading of concentrates for transport to the warehouse at Sta. Maria Port.
- Concentrate Warehouse -
- Construction of the concentrate warehouse at the port of Sta. Maria was completed on December 23, 2008. Hauling of the first batch of copper concentrates to the warehouse commenced on December 26, 2008.
- Construction of the "dryer house" at the warehouse has commenced. The construction of this mezzanine room for concentrate assaying is expected to continue for approximately one month.
- Continued with the related road maintenance and drainage controls.
Figure 5: Sta. Maria port concentrate warehouse
- Assay Laboratory -
- Sulphide Dam -
- The sulphide tailings impoundment facility is now operational.
- Continued work on the concreting of the temporary spillway at the right abutment. This is a necessary preparation to raise the spillway level to about 292 metres from the current 282 metres.
- Further sulphide dam construction work will be allocated as the need arises.
Figure 6: View of the sulphide dam
- Environmental Rehabilitation -
- Completed the construction of a sediment pond at the back road side of the pit.
- Commenced installation of safety barrier at the rehabilitated Ambaan Ridge and erected log posts in the area. This is part of TVIRD's Safety Action Plan for 2009.
- Reforestation at the rehabilitated Ambaan Ridge was completed after having planted 625 Mangium trees at the third and last benches.
- Continued preparation and implementation of environmental protection plans.
- Began reclamation activities at the upper and lower tailings dam impoundments consisting of debris removal and placement of fill materials on top of the tailings.
- Commenced rehabilitation and drainage controls at southwest overburden dump and the Phase 2 area within the Lumot Creek watershed.
- Social Development and Management Program -
- Continued to expand the Food Always In The Home ("FAITH") program in the Canatuan area.
- Worked with the Siocon Subanon Women's Association Inc. (SSWAI) to assist their expanding program.
- Implemented a number of medical missions in neighbouring communities.
- Launched a computer literacy program for the indigenous peoples.
- Hosted members of the municipal council members to witness the blasting in the pit area.
About TVI Pacific Inc. (TSX: TVI)
TVI Pacific Inc. is a publicly traded Canadian mining company focused on exploring for and producing precious and base metals within district scale systems in the Philippines. The Company's interest in the Canatuan Mine and its other Philippine assets are held through its affiliate, TVI Resource Development (Phils.) Inc.
Further Information: Investor Relations - 403-265-4356 or tvi-info@tvipacific.com
Certain information set out in this News Release constitutes forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe", "scheduled" and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based upon the opinions and expectations of management of the Company as at the effective date of such statements and, in certain cases, information received from or disseminated by third parties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions and that information received from or disseminated by third parties is reliable, it can give no assurance that those expectations will prove to have been correct. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties (known and unknown) that could cause actual outcomes to differ materially from those anticipated or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, such things as the volatility of prices for precious metals and base metals, commodity supply and demand, fluctuations in currency and interest rates, inherent risks associated with the exploration and development of mining properties, ultimate recoverability of mineral reserves, timing, results and costs of exploration and development activities, availability of financial resources or third-party financing, new laws (domestic or foreign), changes in administrative practices, changes in exploration plans or budgets, and availability of equipment and availability of personnel. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance upon the forward-looking statements contained in this News Release and such forward-looking statements should not be interpreted or regarded as guarantees of future outcomes. Forward-looking information respecting the timing of commencement, completion or commissioning of various components of the Sulphide Project, is based upon progress made to date on the construction of the infrastructure required to support mining and processing activities from the Sulphide zone at Canatuan, advice received from third-party contractors with respect to the timing of various components of the construction project, prior experiences of management with construction and commissioning activities at Canatuan, the current development plan for Canatuan and the Company's current budget and overall strategy for Canatuan, which plans, budget and strategy are all subject to change. The forward-looking statements of the Company contained in this News Release are expressly qualified, in their entirety, by this cautionary statement. Various risks to which the Company is exposed in the conduct of its business (including mining activities) are described in detail in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2007, which was filed on SEDAR on March 27, 2008 and is available under the Company's profile at www.SEDAR.com. Subject to applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly revise the forward-looking statements included in this News Release to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the information contained herein.
2000, 736 - 6 Avenue S.W. Calgary, Alberta T2P 3T7
Tel: (403) 265-4356 Fax: (403) 264-7028
Website: http://www.tvipacific.com/ E-mail: tvi-info@tvipacific.com
|
|