MYL (ASX) Ann: MYL Investor Presentation

Originally posted by Ken Shabby: ↑

Agree with your comments. Also (from memory in a previous life):
Avebury was cheap to put on care and maintenance (plant and TSF hardly used; contract mining easily let go etc)
Arsenic distribution wasn't fully understood - high As encountered where low was modelled. Avebury's average As grade isn't particularly high compared to Kambalda nickel mines... it's challenge is its lower Ni grade and the all important Ni:As ratio - ie low Ni grade in ore and a high Ni conc grade means As is also significantly scaled up in conc (acceptable conc limit of As is 5000ppm - only need about 330ppm As (quite low) in ore to touch this threshold at 1% Ni ore grade going into c. 15% Ni conc. assuming 1:1 scale up with Ni). Hopefully MYL can find another product to make or leach the As out of the conc (haven't read any of the accompanying reports; it may say they are doing this but it will cost capex / opex if they do).

Deposit is v sensitive to cut off. Cut off had to increase as Ni price went down to try and protect margin, which pushed up decline vertical advance rate (to get to deeper material above cut off) - cash was being conserved for finishing off Prom Hill so onto cheap c&m it went.

The plant had a shit layout at the front end resulting in lower throughput (for the short time it did operate).

Hopefully the margins are around now for this mine to stay open for a decent period. Will need good talent to run it well.

DYOR

GLTAH
Cheers
KS

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Your comment "Avebury's average As grade isn't particularly high compared to Kambalda nickel mines" led me to question an earlier post I made where I said the high arsenic content at Avebury was "unique in Australian Ni mines and deposits .....as far as I know". Seems I didn't know and there are in fact a number of Australian Ni mines/deposits with significant levels of As; significant in the sense that the As levels lead/led to measures to contain the economic impact (revenue, opex, capex). I stand corrected.

It's hard researching the economic impact of As related to Ni mines as the Companies seem to avoid mentioning the subject as much as they can, and because of the almost complete absence of public information on arsenic penalties within off-take agreements - situations that won't change. I'm pleased that MYL is being relatively open about As and mentioning what seems like an evolving strategy to deal with it. Negotiating their confidential new offtake agreement with Hartley is obviously important.