Tungsten West plc said that the estimated remaining capital expenditure of £31.5 million was “significantly below” the previous forecast for restarting production at the Hemerdon tin-tungsten mine in Devon.
BUDGET
The company added that the figure, which excludes a 20% contingency of £6.3m, is less than that projected when the company paused the project in April 2022.
The estimate is from the final capex budget and construction schedule from its engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contractor, Fairport Engineering Ltd.
SCHEDULE
Tungsten West added it would order for the remaining long lead time items for delivery during Q1 2023, with commissioning of the plant upgrades expected in Q2 2023.
Completion of its independently reviewed revised feasibility study, which will provide further guidance on schedule and life-of-mine financial metrics, is due before the end of November 2022.
| Capital Item | £m |
| Ore Sorting: new building, conveyors and construction | 10.5 |
| Primary and Secondary Crush: earthworks and equipment | 6.2 |
| Tertiary Crushing: screens and conveyors | 4.1 |
| Processing Plant: process changes and upgrades | 2.7 |
| EPCM fees: | 2.6 |
| IT: Hardware and software | 1.3 |
| Other | 4.1 |
| TOTAL | £31.5m |
FINANCING
Tungsten West is also progressing towards final documentation for the signed term sheet for a US$30m (£26.5m) royalty sale.
Additionally, the company is seeking up to £10m of asset-backed loans for which it is engaged with a number of specialist asset-backed finance providers.
As at 30 September 2022, Tungsten West held £14.5m cash at hand.
RENEWABLE ENERGY
The company said it had begun scoping studies for both solar and wind energy for the mine.
One identified site covers 50 acres, within 1.2km of Hemerdon, suitable for 9MW – 12MW of solar energy production.
A further three potential sites are suitable for wind turbines.