Frontier Mining recommences operations at Benkala Copper Project

Frontier Mining, the AIM-listed independent copper producer operating in Kazakhstan, has reported the recommencement of operations at its flagship Benkala Copper Project.

The company said that the operations team had been on site over the past weeks preparing for operational restart to allow leaching to begin.

Agglomerated ore had been loaded onto pads before December to facilitate an immediate start-up, without the need for crushing stockpiled ore, or depending on activity resuming at the mine.

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It said that shipping of cathodes was anticipated to begin in the first week of June.

Over the course of 2013, the company said it would continue to work on the expansion of the Benkala site to 10,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) capacity and would spend an additional $6.0 m of capital expenditure on additional leach pads, improvements to the crushing and agglomeration process and general site enhancements.

Yerlan Aliyev, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented: "We are keen to resume operations at Benkala with all haste. Continued development of the site offers considerable benefits to both the company and our shareholders, and I am in no doubt that is a prudent investment."

Frontier Mining's share price was down 5.83% to 2.82p at 09:14 on Tuesday.

MF