Galena Mining Limited owns 60% of the nearly built Abra Lead/Silver Mine. The Abra mine is the first mine to be built in the extremely prospective Edmond Sedimentary Basin in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. The Abra Joint Venture was established in April 2019 between Galena (60%) and Toho Zinc (40%). Abra mine construction commenced in the second half of 2021 following Financial Investment Decision (FID) in June 2021. By the end of August 2022, mine construction has reached 83% complete.
Quickly approaching the commissioning stage of the project, the mine will be producing the cleanest, highest-grade lead-silver concentrate in the world from Q1, 2023. All the key agreements and materials required for the project are well established and in place.
Highlights
• Site construction ~83% complete
• Build on time and on budget for first concentrate production in Q1-2023
• Initial plan life of mine of 13 years mining 1.3Mtpa, producing 93ktpa lead and 553kozpa Silver
• Steady state average annual EBITDA ~A$100M
• Average C1 direct cash cost US$0.50/lb
• US$110M debt facilities from Taurus
• Offtake 100% committed
• Key operating and construction contracts in place (Byrnecut, GRES, and Pacific Energy)
• Strong JV partner in Toho Zinc of Japan at asset-level (40% interest)
In 2021 the global lead consumption for refined lead was 13.1Mt. 87% of refined lead is used in batteries, 65% of these are automotive with 75% of these being replacement batteries. 400 million lead acid batteries are consumed worldwide each year supplying 1.4 billion vehicles (including EV’s). Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) associated with solar and wind energy generation is also featuring the safe, cheap and reliable use of lead.
The Abra Mineral Resource boasts 34.5Mt at 7.2% lead and 16 g/t silver. Being fully funded for the Abra mine build will enable the JV to access the deeper copper/gold targets identified adjacent and below the proven lead/silver mineralisation. The company is also strategically well placed with 100% ownership of the adjacent 500km2 Jillawarra Project, which presents many strong base metal targets directly along strike from the Abra mineralisation and project infrastructure. The company is well positioned to have a long and rewarding future in this new and exciting base metals region of Western Australia.
Company Codes
ASX: G1A / FRA: GM6
