LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG--(Marketwire - Dec. 4, 2012) - Northland Resources S.A. (News - Market indicators)(OSLO:NAUR)(FRANKFURT:NPK)(OMX:NAURo) ("Northland" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the first concentrate has now been produced at the Kaunisvaara process plant. The Kaunisvaara project is the first project that Northland has developed from exploration to production.
Northland Resources has executed the Kaunisvaara project in less than two years. During this period the Company has constructed the industrial area, removed more than 4,500,000 m3 of overburden from the Tapuli mine, and installed a primary crusher, conveyor belts, grizzly building as well as ore sheds. As the mills, separators and other equipment in the process plant are now operating, Northland is pleased to officially confirm that the first concentrate has been produced.
"This is truly a remarkable achievement by the Northland team together with our key suppliers Metso, Peab and Pon CAT in Kaunisvaara. Northland has, all along, been able to keep up with the time schedule that we set up three years ago," said Karl-Axel Waplan, President & CEO of Northland. "This has only been possible with the tremendous dedication of the project management team and our competent staff. Our close partnership with our contract partners has played a vital role in our success."
Metso has supplied and installed the mineral processing equipment for the first process line at the Kaunisvaara process plant consisting of one primary gyratory crusher, one semi-autogenous/autogenous (SAG/AG) grinding mill, 2 vertical grinding mills ("VTM 3000"), magnetic separators and 2 VPA press filters.
With all these parts in place and the ongoing successful commissioning, Northland will continue the work towards its next goal which is to ship the first concentrate to customers early first quarter of 2013.
Northland plans to produce 1.4 million dry metric tonnes ("dmt") of high-grade (69%) iron ore concentrate, with low impurities such as alumina and silica in 2013 and 3.0 million dmt in 2014. The Company expects to reach the production capacity of 4.0 million dmt per year in the beginning of third quarter of 2014.
The product will be trucked 150 km on public roads to the trans-loading facility in Pitkäjärvi and then transported 226 km on the railway Malmbanan/Ofotbanen to the Port of Narvik in Norway for shipment to end customers. Narvik is an ice-free, deep-water port that allows shipment on Cape-size vessels year-around.
Kaunisvaara project milestones
- DFS finalized: Q3 2010
- Off-take for 100% of production signed: Q4 2010
- USD 250 million equity raised: Q4 2010
- Construction contracts in place - start of the project: Q4 2010
- Agreements signed for mining equipment and process plant: Q1 2011
- Final approval to operate an iron ore terminal in Narvik: Q4 2011
- Financing consisting of equity (USD 325m) and bond (USD 350m): Q1 2012
- Start of the Pitkäjärvi terminal ground work: Q1 2012
- Signed final logistics agreements with Savage, Peab and Grieg: Q2 2012
- Logistics agreement signed with Green Cargo: Q2 2012
- USD 40 million Cost Overrun Facility with Standard Bank: Q2 2012
- Building permit granted in Pitkäjärvi: Q2 2012
- Finalized financing for drill rigs and mobile equipment: Q2 2012
- First delivery of mobile equipment from Caterpillar, mills from Metso and drill rigs from Atlas Copco: Q2 2012
- First drawdown from the Bond Loan Facility: Q2 2012
- Second drawdown from the Bond Loan Facility: Q3 2012
- First ore blast in Kaunisvaara: Q3 2012
- Northland granted the four requested slots on Malmbanan: Q3 2012
- Dispensation for 90 tonnes trucks granted: Q4 2012
- First concentrate produced in December 2012
Karl-Axel Waplan, President & CEO, Northland Resources S.A.
Northland is a producer of iron ore concentrate, with a portfolio of production, development and exploration mines and projects in northern Sweden and Finland. The first construction phase of the Kaunisvaara Project is complete and production started in November 2012. The Company will produce high-grade, high-quality magnetite iron concentrate in Kaunisvaara, Sweden, where the Company will exploit two magnetite iron ore deposits, Tapuli and Sahavaara. Northland has entered into off-take contracts with three partners for the entire production from the Kaunisvaara Project over the next seven to ten years. The Company is also preparing a Definitive Feasibility Study ("DFS") for its Hannukainen Iron Oxide Copper Gold ("IOCG") project in Kolari, northern Finland and for the Pellivuoma deposit, which is located 15 km from the Kaunisvaara processing plant.
