Some positive mediaAustralia's Irvine iron ore project picks...

Some positive media


Australia's Irvine iron ore project picks private Chinese partner
Singapore (Platts)--4Aug2011/315 am EDT/715 GMT


Australian explorer Pluton Resources has picked private Chinese company Timeone Holdings as a strategic investor and preferred joint venture partner for its Irvine Island iron ore project, off the coast of Western Australia, the two companies said Thursday in a joint statement.

Under the deal, Timeone will invest up to A$30 million ($32 million) for a 30% stake in Pluton through the purchase of new ordinary shares at a unit price of $A0.355 in four tranches.

Timeone, a British Virgin Island registered company backed by private Chinese investors, has a contract with Rizhao Port Group, operator of the world's largest iron ore import port in China's Shandong province, the statement said.

"The results of initial beneficiation testing at our facilities in Southeast China indicate that a high quality average 67.5% iron concentrate can be produced," Timeone said in the joint statement.

The Rizhao Port Group has committed to provide land access at the port to build beneficiation plants and facilities to process the pre-concentrate from Irving Island, the Chinese company added.

The Chinese side would also bring strong financial backing and end-user relations, the statement said.

Pluton and Timeone have agreed to work towards finalizing a joint venture agreement, which is expected to include capital funding and an offtake agreement, by January 2, 2012.

The deal between Pluton and Timeone follows a recent Stage One pre-feasibility study for the Irvine Island project, which targets 8.5 million mt/year of pre-concentrate containing 4.4 million mt/year of final product averaging 67% Fe.

Pluton had said in late June that indigenous landowners have ratified a native title mining agreement.

If an investment decision is made, the project is expected to start producing in late 2013 or early 2014, with an initial lifespan of 11 years.

--Kimfeng Wong, [email protected]