CuDeco has suspended mining and processing at its Rocklands copper operation.
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The company said the suspension at the plant 15km west of Cloncurry would last until September 10 to allow for critical maintenance work.
CuDeco said it was bringing forward the planned process plant ball mill reline and extending the planned maintenance shutdown.
CuDeco will also undertake a number of business improvement projects and financial assurances during this period.
“This suspension is vital for Rocklands’ operations and the future of this important asset for Cloncurry,” CuDeco chairman Peter Hutchison said.
“During this period our major shareholder representatives will continue to progress a number of funding initiatives which have been in active discussion for some time now and which we are confident will provide effective solutions to immediate and longer-term funding requirements.
“This time will also be used by the company to reset our operation and refine our business model so that once our financing arrangements are successfully secured we can achieve the full potential of our project for the benefit of all parties who have supported the company to date.”
The news comes after CuDeco released its quarterly report to the ASX.
The company said it had mined 5.14 million tonnes of material, (0.25 million tonnes of ore and 4.89 million tonnes of waste) during the quarter but activities were affected by a major rain event in early March the effects of which continued into the June quarter.
CuDeco said they had increased throughput capability thanks to a new gravity bypass circuit commissioned in April.
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Total copper concentrate produced for the quarter was 13,857 dmt at a final copper grade of 25.24% containing 3497t of copper metal.
“Copper production at the processing plant was impacted by limited plant throughput caused by wet and high clay content of the gravity ore processed during the quarter, along with lower than anticipated recovery rates,” they said.
CuDeco said their mining focus would switch to flotation ore type “more suited to the Rocklands processing plant.”
They expect this to maximise copper concentrate production and cash flow generation in the next six months.