Talon Metals Corp. said Nov. 12 that an initial preliminary economic assessment for the Tamarack nickel-copper project in Minnesota outlined a base case posttax net present value, discounted at 7%, of US$210 million, a 38.8% internal rate of return and a 2.1-year payback period.
Average annual nickel concentrate production is estimated at 79,500 tonnes per annum and copper concentrate production estimated at 18,300 tonnes per annum during the seven-year mine life.
The PEA estimated initial CapEx of US$174.3 million for the first two years and seven months before the start of production.
C1 cash costs are pegged at US$2.20 per pound of payable nickel.
Payable nickel production was estimated at 23.3 million pounds per year, with 127.5 million pounds over the mine's life. Payable copper production came at 11.1 million pounds per year, with 66.8 million pounds over Tamarack's life.
The study used a base case nickel price of US$8.00/lb and a base case copper price of US$3.00/lb.
The company said it plans a follow-up exploration on nearby high-grade nickel-copper-cobalt intercepts to determine the extent of mineralization that appears open in all directions.
Talon entered an option agreement with Rio Tinto unit Kennecott Exploration Company for the right to acquire up to a 60% interest in Tamarack.
