There has been a litany of complaints recently that the company...

There has been a litany of complaints recently that the company is not providing information. While we all keenly await the "next" announcement for that dreamt of super hit I'd like to point out the nose on the end of our faces that most seem to be ignoring.

Stage 1 planning is progressing apace. As stated in the Quarterly,

"Progress continues to be made on the Stage I (Antas North Deposit) Feasibility Study. The study currently envisages a 400,000t/pa open pit operation with a head grade of +3.0% Copper and +0.7g/t Gold over the first 5 years of operation (2.86% Copper over the life of mine), producing approximately 11,000t/pa of Copper in concentrate over a mine life of approximately 10 years."

If you read the notes you will see that these figures do not yet include the additional benefit of the oxide ores at Antas South, they will add substantial value. Furthermore, as stated at the AGM, AVB plan to continue production based drilling from the floor of the mine pit to increase the resource at Antas North. The advantage of this is that costs will be kept to a minimum and mine life or annual production rates may well exceed expectations in time. This, I imagine, will also make it easier to secure the funding required.

But looking at just the figures releases so far in the prelim scoping study;

C1 costs for first 3 years in an initial 10 year plan (it will get extended or I'll eat my hat ) are $2533 per tonne with today's copper price of $8228 per tonne resulting in a gross profit of $76 million per year. Yes, there will be additional costs so this will chew some of the $76 Million per year but AVB are looking at having the ability to self fund Pedra Branca mining and regional exploration drilling etc. $220 million gross profit in the first 3 years.

The company went on to tell us in the quarterly that they have employed one of the top technical directors (on a full-time basis) to put a rocket under this planning process. Wayne Phillips credentials were noted, do a little research on the companies mentioned.

"As an expert in sulphide flotation Mr Phillips has participated in more than a dozen feasibility studies and adjudicated the award of and supervision of numerous
construction projects. For the last ten years Mr Phillips was the Technical Director for Kinross Gold, South America. Mr Phillips will assume immediate responsibility for development, construction and production from Avanco’s
Carajas Copper Projects."

I don't think they employed this guy to make the coffee!

The other directorial appointment they made, Mr Luis Azevedo, is a specialist in two areas that will be of significant importance to AVB. Planning approvals and finance.

"(he provides) specialist legal and technical support to both junior and major exploration/mining companies in matters of mineral tenure, regulatory approvals and local finance."

Read that again, let it sink in. They are building the dream team that they need. It is not a case of too many chiefs as some have suggested but rather a case of the right people for the task that is now at hand.

There is of course a lot of positive news to flow through about Pedra Branca drilling and the resource upgrade at stage 2 but I'll leave those for another post as the main game now is stage 1. No, just one comment, consider what this company will be earning with Stage 2 mining under way...maybe a 50,000 tonne plant at PB on top of the 13,500 at AN? Ball park, $350 million a year gross profit.

I was amazed looking back at the posts that came out after the quarterly publication...less was considered or discussed than gets discussed daily on whether the second hand plant would be a rust bucket! As if. They state clearly that the equipment they are looking at is "suitable", not a rusting hulk. I know for some it has been a wait but this looks like being our year. How about some intelligent discussion about what they have told us?

Clean metallurgy.
Great resource and growing. 700,000 tonne equivalent and JORC upgrade coming.
Great team
Ready to start mine building, perhaps by mid year.
Ready to start producing first half 2014?
Mining a mineral that appears to be in constrained supply.