Canadian copper, nickel, gold and silver explorer Power Metallic has appointed BBA as lead engineering consultant for a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) on the Lion and Nisk Main deposits at the Nisk project, in Québec.
The study, which is targeted for completion in the first half of next year, will assess mining and processing options, infrastructure requirements, capital and operating costs and preliminary project economics.
The PEA will be based on a mineral resource estimate for the Lion deposit that was released in September, as well as new metallurgical studies being conducted on the Nisk Main deposit by consultancy SGS Canada.
“Appointing BBA puts strong engineering capability behind our next major milestone. Its multidisciplinary capabilities, Québec presence and experience advancing mining projects through successive study stages make it well suited to lead the PEA,” says Power Metallic CEO Terry Lynch.
He adds that the Lion deposit will form the principal basis of the development study and that early work will confirm the preferred mining sequence and whether and how Nisk Main should be incorporated. The company aims to establish a credible and appropriately scaled initial development case with attention to capital requirements, operating complexity and surface disturbance.
The study will also consider how the project design could accommodate potential future resource growth without making that growth necessary to support the initial case.
Power Metallic also owns the Jabal Baudan exploration licence in Saudi Arabia, which is in an area recognised for high prospectivity for copper, gold and zincmineralisation.