Kinsevere - Geology Overview
Kinsevere is Anvil’s largest investment in the DRC. Kinsevere Stage II involves the construction of a 60,000 tonnes per year Solvent Extraction-Electrowinning (SX-EW) plant at an estimated capital expenditure of $400 million. The power needed for smelting and cathode copper production is being delivered via a 27km transmission line installed by the Company which connects the mine to the region’s hydro-electric grid.
120Kv hydro-electric transmission line and access route
The commissioning of the Stage I HMS plant began in June 2007 with the first copper concentrates produced that month. The Company recommenced HMS copper production, after several months of care and maintenance, on March 27, 2009.
HMS plant at Kinsevere
History
The mineral rights to Kinsevere have been historically owned by La Générale et Carrière des Mines (Gécamines). During the 1990’s the Tshifufia and Tshifufiamashi prospects were the subject of a joint venture between Gécamines and EXACO s.p.r.l., a local Congolese company interested primarily in exploiting nea- surface, high-grade, oxide cobalt resources. The joint venture was restricted to cobalt resources within 30 metres of the surface. A total of 67 holes were drilled into the Tshifufia and Tshifufiamashi deposits by EXACO, the majority of which were vertical, and down the dip of the orebodies. They were designed to test the distribution and grade of the oxide cobalt mineralisation. Gécamines also carried out preliminary investigations and some drilling on the Kinsevere Hill, Tshifufia Central, Tshifufia South and Tshifufiamashi deposits during the early 1990’s.
Subsequent to these investigations, an open pit was developed by EXACO to a depth of approximately 30 metres on the Tshifufia South prospect and 56,000 tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.14% Cu and 0.76% Co were mined.
Exploration - Kinsevere (DRC)
Overview
Kinsevere is Anvil's largest investment in the DRC. Stage I of the project currently includes an open pit mining operation and a Heavy Media Separation (HMS) plant. Kinsevere Stage II is a 60,000 tonnes per year Solvent Extraction and Electrowinning ("SX-EW") copper project on which commissioning is expected to commence in Q1 2011.
In January 2010, the Company announced an updated Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource estimate for its Kinsevere project of 29.5 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.8% for 807k tonnes of contained copper.
Kinsevere Mineral Resource Estimate
Comparisons with previous Measured & Indicated resource estimates reflect an overall reduction in the oxide Mineral Resource but an increase in the sulphide Mineral Resources. Tonnage increases associated with extensional drilling were offset by mining depletion, together with changes in modelled density and to a lesser extent, grade. Material mined and now in stockpile for the Stage II SX-EW development amount to 2.4 million tonnes at 2.0% Cu (excluding stockpiles from the HMS plant. At this time, preliminary pit optimizations and economic analysis have shown the potential for an extension of the open pit to provide for access to the sulphide resource, a significant portion of is expected to be mined by open pit methods.
Based on the current drill spacing, the Tshifufia and Tshifufiamashi deposits remain open for incremental additions to the sulphide Mineral Resource between 320 to 400 metres and 170 to 260 metres from surface, respectively. The updated Mineral Resource estimate is presented in the table below:
Kinsevere Proven and Probable Reserve Estimate(1) as at year-end 2009
| Classification | MTonnes | TCu% | ASCu% | Contained ASCu kTonnes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proven | 8.8 | 4 | 3.5 | 386.2 |
| Probable | 12 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 262.3 |
Total Proven & Probable | 20.8 | 3.9 | 3.3 | 689.5 |
Kinsevere Copper Project Mineral Resource Estimate(1,2)
Tshifufia, Tshifufiamashi and Kinsevere Hill Deposits as at year-end 2009
Oxide Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource Estimate
| Classification | MTonnes | TCu% | ASCu% | Cu kTonnes | ASCu kTonnes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indicated | 16.4 | 3.59 | 2.80 | 588.4 | 458.9 |
| Measured | 9.6 | 4.14 | 3.54 | 397.3 | 339.5 |
Measured & Indicated | 26.0 | 3.79 | 3.07 | 985.7 | 798.4 |
Total Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource Estimate
| Classification | MTonnes | TCu% | Cu kTonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measured & Indicated (Oxide and Sulphide) | 29.76 | 3.78 | 1,124.8 |
Sulphide Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate
| Classification | MTonnes | TCu% | Cu kTonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inferred | 12.6 | 3.54 | 447.8 |
Total Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate
| Classification | MTonnes | TCu% | Cu kTonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inferred (Oxide and Sulphide) | 14.1 | 3.59 | 507.1 |
1. A cut-off grade of 0.7% Cu has been used in all categories of the Mineral Resource estimate.
2. Mineral Resource estimates have been classified and reported using the guidelines of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (the JORC Code, 2004). These guidelines are consistent with those of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum, 2000.
The year-end 2008 Mineral Resource estimate has been defined from oxide orebodies (to 110 metres depth) and sulphide orebodies (up to 430 metres depth). The revised estimate reflects interpretation of grade control data and pit mapping and associated refinements to interpreted ore to waste contacts. Although more than 25,500 assays have been included to date from the 2008 drilling program, the assay results from the remaining 8,000 samples are yet to be received. Details of drilling carried out at Kinsevere during 2007 and 2008 are shown in the table below:
Kinsevere Copper Project Drilling Database
| 2007 | 2008 | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metres | Number of Holes | Metres | Number of Holes | Metres | Number of Holes | |
| Air-Core Drilling | 7,937 | 171 | 661 | 15 | 8,598 | 186 |
| Reverse Circulation Drilling | 22,060 | 261 | 12,652 | 91 | 34,712 | 352 |
| Diamond Drilling | 10,427 | 13 | 13,552 | 44 | 23,979 | 57 |
| Total | 40,424 | 445 | 26,865 | 150 | 67,289 | 595 |
Geology
There are three known deposits located on the exploitation lease PE528 (Kinsevere)
The three deposits at Kinsevere are named, from north to south, Tshifufiamashi, Tshifufia and Kinsevere Hill. They are hosted by what appear to be two separate "mega-fragments" of prospective stratigraphy (Lower Roan Supergroup/Mines Group), which are surrounded by younger sediments of the Kundelungu Supergroup, of the Katangan System. Lithologically, the deposits occur in a mixed sequence of siliciclastic and carbonate rocks, which are typical hosts to Katangan Copperbelt mineralisation.
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Most of the Kinsevere Mineral Resource defined to date (in all three deposits) is oxide ore, which forms a thick (>100m) supergene blanket that overlies sulphide mineralisation. The dominant copper oxide minerals are malachite (carbonate), pseudo-malachite (phosphate) and azurite (carbonate), which are disseminated throughout the host rock, or as veins and/or veinlets that sometimes coalesce into prominent "clots". Heterogenite (cobalt oxide) is sometimes inter-grown with the copper, but is always a minor component of the ore.
The dominant copper sulphide mineral of the primary ore is chalcopyrite, but minor bornite, chalcocite and cuprite also occur, along with native copper and pyrite. Most of this mineralisation occurs in veins and veinlets that often cross-cut bedding.
All three of the deposits are interpreted to be examples of structurally modified stratiform copper mineralization, which has weathered to form a supergene blanket of oxide ore.
Exploration History
Since the exploration program began in early 2005, Anvil has completed the following:
Surface trenching program - confirmed historical results of Gécamines
- Phase 1 drilling program (7,937m) in 2005 to define a preliminary resource for all three Kinsevere deposits
- Phase 2 drilling program (7,000m) in 2006 to increase the defined resource at the Tshifufia deposit
- Phase 3 drilling program (40,865m) in 2007 to increase level of confidence in the mineral reserves and resources on the Tshifufia, Tshifufiamashi, Kinsevere Hill deposits and the Kinsevere extension.
- Phase 4 exploration program (26,700m) in 2008 at Kinsevere completed to evaluate at depth the sulphide zone at the three main deposits
Environmental Approvals
The Kinsevere Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was approved in the fourth quarter of 2008 by the DRC Government Directorate for the Protection of the Mining Environment (DPEM). This approval included a variance to the design and operation of the Stage II Tailings Storage Facility (TSF), incorporating milling-in-raffinate in the net process and the requirement for secure storage of non-neutralised tailings. These design changes will result in significant reductions in consumption of water, lime and acid, with resulting operating cost improvements.
In addition to the requirements of the DRC Government, a revised Environmental and Social Impact Assessment is in preparation, in order to align the Company's environmental management of Kinsevere Stage II with the Equator Principles, the environmental, health and safety guidelines of the International Finance Corporation.
Tenements
The Kinsevere-Nambulwa Projects is located on two mining licenses (Permis d'Exploitations), PE528 and PE539, which cover a combined area of 29.6km2. Both of these licenses are owned by Gécamines. AMCK (a Joint Venture company formed between Anvil and Mining Company Katanga SPRL), signed an Amendment Lease Agreement with Gécamines and the DRC Government in Q1 2009. Under this agreement AMCK leases the underlying tenement from Gécamines for a royalty payment of 2.5% of gross turnover. The Company has a 95% interest in the Kinsevere Lease Agreement.
