GRV will be the ONLY bitumen producer in Australia and quite possibly all of Australasia (not 100% sure on that as havent thoroughly researched NZ yet but from preliminary research that seems to be the case) and that will be huge IF they pull it off and my research says they will.
My understanding is the 'delay' is not necessarily due to approvals its about bringing the most optimal cost efficient product to market. Hence they are exploring the geothermal prospects to a) offset carbon emissions and b) to potentially derive a profit from the geothermal product by selling back to current energy suppliers. That's 2 profit streams in sectors that are only going to increase given the craziness of the current macro and domestic political climates.
The Alpha (bitumen) project is not contingent on the geothermal venture to proceed ie GRV can still proceed with the bitumen project using solar as a way to offset carbon emissions or alternatively they can do nothing and just buy carbon credits on market if they had to. However, by facilitating a successful geothermal venture GRV can maximise profits from Alpha and potentially create additional profit. The downside for shareholders is we have to wait a little longer while they navigate this route.
We are currently waiting on 'refined' PARR reactor test results to see if the yield from the torbanite resource can be 'milked' any further but I believe (please correct me if I am wrong) even based on the already received results (as per prior announcement) the bitumen project is viable. Although why produce a PFS based on those when potentially the figures can be a whole lot better with a few refinements.
That is my understanding as to where we are at. Happy to be corrected if that is not the case.
Give Mark Turner a call if need be. In my experience he is very open and upfront about things and is very happy to answer any questions.
Add to My Watchlist
What is My Watchlist?
