Country for PR: United Kingdom
Contributor: PR Newswire Europe
Tuesday, January 07 2020 - 08:00
AsiaNet
Atlantic Nickel Announces First Sale of Nickel Concentrate From Santa Rita
LONDON, January 6, 2020 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --

Highlights 

- First sale of nickel concentrate from the Santa Rita with shipment in January 
2020

 - Following the re-commencement of the mine in July 2019, mining and 
processing operations are both ahead of schedule 

 - Over 11,000 dmt of in-specification concentrate produced to date

 - Offtake agreement and financing facility in place with Trafigura, one of 
Atlantic Nickel's cornerstone offtakers

 - Production expected to reach nominal annualised capacity in 2020 

Atlantic Nickel ("Atlantic Nickel" or the "Company") and Appian Capital 
Advisory LLP ("Appian") are pleased to announce the first sale of nickel 
concentrate from the Santa Rita nickel sulphide re-start project ("Santa Rita" 
or the "Project") located in Brazil. 

Since the recommencement of blasting activities in July 2019, the Company has 
safely achieved several operational milestones on or ahead of schedule. 
Refurbishment of the plant is complete, and the ramp-up of commissioning 
activities has resulted in early production of nickel concentrate. The Company 
has produced over 11,000 dmt to date and is set to deliver its first shipment 
in January of 2020.

On the back of strong commercial interest, the Company has looked to establish 
relationships with a diverse set of offtake partners, each with strong 
reputations globally. In line with this strategy, Atlantic Nickel is pleased to 
announce that it has entered into a three-year offtake contract for a portion 
of Santa Rita's production and a US$40.8m financing arrangement with Trafigura. 
The deal provides the remaining funding required for the restart of the project 
and establishes a strong relationship with a best-in-class global commodities 
trading firm.

The quick, safe, and capital efficient restart has been, and will continue to 
be, driven by high-calibre execution from the team on the ground in Bahia, 
delivering on a revised operating strategy developed and implemented jointly by 
Atlantic Nickel's leading management team and Appian, and maintaining the 
excellent existing infrastructure at site.

Following the announcement of recent drilling results 
(https://appiancapitaladvisory.com/atlantic-nickels-drilling-upgrades-mineral-re
source-and-adds-significant-underground-resource-potential-at-santa-rita-realize
s-first-trial-production-of-nickel-concentrate/), an updated open pit reserve 
statement is planned for completion in Q1 2020 and the Company expects to 
undertake further drilling in 2020 to continue to grow and define the long life 
underground resource potential.

Paulo Castellari, CEO Atlantic Nickel & Appian Brazil commented:

"I am delighted to announce the official re-start and first sale from Santa 
Rita. This important milestone for both Atlantic Nickel and Appian demonstrates 
the technical excellence of our team who have brought the project back to 
production ahead of schedule in a safe and responsible manner. The team and I 
am now looking forward to bringing the asset to full capacity.

Following our updated mineral resource estimate, Santa Rita is an asset with 
significant upside, with the potential for further expansion both underground 
and through an open pit satellite resource. 

Today's announcement further de-risks the project and I remain confident in 
Santa Rita's prospects as a low-cost, long-life mine that is well positioned to 
benefit from the growth in electric vehicles to generate strong investor 
returns".

About Appian 

Appian Capital Advisory LLP is the investment advisor to the Appian Natural 
Resources Fund LP and the Appian Natural Resources Fund II LP, long-term value 
focused private equity funds that invest solely in mining and mining related 
companies. Appian is a leading investment advisor in the metals and mining 
industry, with global experience across South America, North America, Australia 
and Africa and a successful track record of supporting companies to achieve 
their development targets. Six of Appian's eight investments are currently in 
production, with another set to be producing in 18 months. Appian acquired 
Atlantic Nickel, the 100% owner of Santa Rita, in 2018. 

About Atlantic Nickel 

Atlantic Nickel is the owner and operator of Santa Rita, an open-pit 
nickel-copper-cobalt sulphide operation located in Bahia, Brazil. Santa Rita is 
a fully permitted, past-producing nickel mine currently undergoing an 
operational restart. The Project benefits from US$1bn of prior investment and 
has an estimated production capacity of 6.5Mtpa. One of the largest open pit 
nickel sulphide mines in the world, Santa Rita is a high-quality asset 
operating with a second quartile cost position. It is one of a few remaining 
nickel sulphide projects globally that can offer additional supply towards the 
production of Class I nickel products and so has exposure to the high-growth 
potential of the electric vehicle industry.

For further information:

Finsbury +44(0)20-7251-3801

Charles O'Brien, Ruban Yogarajah, Richard Crowley

Source: Atlantic Nickel