Ann: Finniss Mineral Resource Increased by 58%, page-43

What exactly are you thinking needs a CR to fund it on a Grants mining restart scenario?

Its a genuine question - what is the item that needs funding to mean a CR to start up?

• Site offices - already built
• Water management systems - already built
• Tailings areas, waste rock landforms, ROM pad - already built
• Crushing services - being supplied on a long-term contract from MinRes
• All surface waste rock at Grants - already removed
• Most deeper waste rock at Grants - already removed
• DMS plant to process from ROM - already built
• Mining gear for Grants (Diggers / Haul trucks) - Either a contractor supplies or leased

There may be DMS plant improvements that would assist either recovery rates or throughput but at 63% recovery rates which are already close to or above what some other Australian hard rock miners are achieving that would appear to be a discretionary choice, not a necessary to restart capital item.

I don't think Core has yet completed its connection to the grid. That will require capital but unless the government imposes bizarre new rules couldn't a restart use the existing generators?

Clearly there's some capital needed to get BP33 completed. There's a lot of capital if Core decides to add a flotation circuit. If there's >1,400kt of ore in Grants still to be removed, operational cash flow rather than a CR could fund these items (if prices are higher).

Core hasn't clarified this well, but could the reason for Core seeking higher prices on restart be that this would enable sufficient operational margin that BP33 and flotation could be undertaken without a CR?

Did Core have a poorly articulated choice - keep mining Grants at low prices and possibly need a CR to complete capital works that would ideally be undertaken for a long-term operation, or Pause mining until prices are higher and avoid a CR by receiving strong margins on the remaining Grants ore?