IGO has bolstered its nickel portfolio in Western Australia after signing an agreement with mining prospector and major shareholder Mark Creasy.
IGO has bolstered its nickel portfolio in Western Australia after signing an agreement with mining prospector and major shareholder Mark Creasy.
Today, IGO announced it would acquire an entire interest in the Silver Knight nickel-copper deposit in the Fraser Range from Mr Creasy’s privately held resources company for $45 million in cash.
IGO and Creasy Group will also form a joint venture over a portfolio of exploration tenements surrounding the deposit, with IGO to retain a 65 per cent interest.
The deal is expected to be completed in early October.
It follows the sale of a 60 per cent share in Creasy’s Andover nickel-copper project near Karratha to Azure Minerals in August last year.
Creasy discovered Silver Knight in 2015, in the same year it sold the nearby Nova project to IGO which began commercial production two years later.
Mr Creasy has roughly 80.5 million shares in IGO, representing voting power of 10.8 per cent, as at December 2020.
Today, IGO said it would complete an infill drilling program at the Silver Knight deposit once its latest deal with Creasy Group is finalised, with a view to update resource and reserve estimates.
IGO will also progress regulatory approvals and a Native Title mining agreement.
“Our aim is to fast track the detailed assessment and permitting of Silver Knight in order to commence first pre-mining activity on the site by 2023,” managing director Peter Bradford said.
“The Silver Knight discovery not only validated the potential for the Fraser Range to host multiple commercial nickel-copper sulphide deposits but also provides a secondary source of feed for the Nova processing plant.”
IGO, which recently sold its 30 per cent interest in the Tropicana goldmine in WA, expects Nova to have produced between 27,000 tonnes and 29,000t of nickel in the year to June 30, along with 11-12,500t of copper and 850-950t of cobalt.
Full-year production figures are expected to be released on July 28.
Shares in IGO were up 2.4 per cent at 12:15pm AEST to trade at $9.14.
