Mincor Resources axes 50 jobs at Kambalda  

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Image credit: www.mincor.com.au

The implementation of a revised mining plan instigated by the ongoing weakness of the nickel price will see Australian nickel miner Mincor Resources cut 50 jobs from the current workforce at its Kambalda operations.

Image credit: www.mincor.com.au
Image credit: www.mincor.com.au

Mincor said in a media statement that the redundancies were necessary to secure the future of the Company after four years of falling nickel prices.

“Regrettably, the new mining plan will necessitate approximately 50 redundancies in Mincor’s current workforce.”

Mincor’s Managing Director, David Moore, said the new mining plan was part of a strategy to maximise operating margins and sharpen its focus on the development of its new growth projects.

Adertisement

“The new strategy follows a recently completed review of the Company’s mining operations in response to ongoing weakness in the nickel price, which has fallen sharply through the financial year and remains at multi-year lows,” Mr Moore said.

According to him, the new plan envisioned suspending capital development at Miitel – having already stopped it at Mariners – and proceeding with stoping-only operations at the two projects, with future plans for both sites depending on market conditions.

“The Company will review operations at Miitel and Mariners through the second half of the year in light of the prevailing nickel price with a view to either recommencing capital development and ramping up production from those mines or reducing production after November and focusing primarily on the development of its new growth projects at Burnett, Cassini, Voyce and Durkin,” Mr Moor said.

He also said that he was hopeful the revised mining plan would optimise cash flows and allow the company to re-build production at both mines in due course, while allowing it to complete the drilling and evaluation of the four exciting new growth projects.

“Detailed resource modelling is currently underway on the Voyce, Durkin and Burnett projects, while Cassini is undergoing conceptual scoping studies in order to determine drilling priorities for the recommencement of diamond drilling. In addition, planning for an aircore drilling programme over the un-explored northern half of the Cassini magnetic anomaly is well-advanced,” Mr Moor added.

He said Mincor remained on track to achieve FY15 production guidance and expects to produce approximately 120,000 tonnes of ore at 2.8% nickel between June and November, and achieve its previously stated production target of approximately 8,500 tonnes of nickel-in-ore.