Nickel mining and exploration company Panoramic Resources (ASX:PAN) is on track to upgrade infrastructure and fabricate a new filter press head unit at its Savannah Nickel Project in Western Australia.
The company says both the upgraded infrastructure and new filter press head unit are scheduled to be finished and installed in the first week of July 2023.
The fabrication of the new filter press head unit follows the identification of a crack on the current filter at the back of the company’s processing circuit.
Panoramic reports it continued with attempts to complete a short-term repair while the new plate was being organised, but the repair was unsuccessful and has now been halted.
Panoramic announces the machining of the new plate is scheduled to begin later this week and expects commissioning to occur shortly after the installation date in July.
Commenting on the progress, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Victor Rajasooriar says: “It’s great to see our site team band together and keep their focus on finding solutions to bring the operations back into production as soon as possible. The commitment from our maintenance team, our external engineering consultants, and contractors has been vital in compressing the forecast duration of fabricating the new head unit.
“The commitment from our maintenance team, our external engineering consultants, and contractors has been vital in compressing the forecast duration of fabricating the new head unit.”
Thinking outside the box has resulted in the filter tubes being successfully trialled to bring forward concentrate production as our underground teams build drilled stocks for the ramp-up of production in July to set up for a successful FY24. On behalf of the board and senior management, I am truly grateful for the efforts of everyone across Panoramic in minimising the impact on our business.”
The company notes throughout the downtime of the filter press over the past 2 weeks, it has taken various steps to position the underground mine and set the foundations for the continued ramp-up of productivity and concentrate production in the 2024 financial year.
In order to maintain an active paste-filling cycle, the company also notes stockpiled mineralised waste has been milled, converted to paste and placed into stope voids underground.
Meanwhile, Panoramic states following the delivery of positive results generated from the treatment of mineralised waste to lower-grade ore to test newly acquired GeoPro tubes, the processing plant has been switched to a blend of higher-grade and lower-grade ore as per normal practice.
With the new filter scheduled for installation in July, Panoramic Resources announces all other production activities at the plant have continued, including long-hole drilling, with drilled stocks increasing to 50,000t available for blasting in the first half of July.
Panoramic Resources is an ASX-listed company headquartered in Perth, Western Australia, and is the sole owner of the Savannah Nickel Project in the East Kimberley region of the state.
Operations at the Savannah project were restarted in 2021 before being recommissioned, with first concentrate shipment achieved in December 2021. The project has a 12-year mine life with ‘clear’ potential to extend this through ongoing exploration.
Panoramic Resources had $32.5 million in cash on hand on 28 April 2023, as stated in its latest quarterly activities report. As of the end of December 2022, the company had a total drawn debt of US$41.4 million under a debt facility with Trafigura Group.
Write to Adam Drought at Mining.com.au
Images: Panoramic Resources Ltd
