Terra Balcanica extends its polymetallic footprint with positive drill exploration in its flagship project in Bosnia

Vancouver-based mining exploration company Terra Balcanica Resources Corp. this morning said it had extended yet again its polymetallic footprint after a positive step out drill exploration within its flagship project in Bosnia.

The company announced today that it intersected 284 g/t silver equivalent (Ageq) over 10 meters from surface, including 895 g/t Ageq over 2 meters at Viogor-zanik Project in Bosnia.

This is the company’s fifth successful exploration drill hole within the Cumavici Ridge target, following their discovery of silver and sulfide mineralization between September and October 2022.

Terra Balcanica confirmed that the Cumavici Ridge is a high-grade polymetallic target, with a significant potential for expansion given the shallow nature of the epithermal system detected so far (30-85 m depth).

Terra Balcanica is a polymetallic resources exploration company based in Vancouver, BC, Canada, targeting large-scale mineral systems in the Balkans of southeastern Europe. They have a 90% stake in their main Viogor-Zanik project in eastern Bosnia and fully-owned mineral exploration licenses in Kaludra and Ceovishte in Serbia. The license sites in Serbia are drill-ready and present bonanza-grade Pb-Zn surface geochemistry and multi-ounce gold assays from grab samples.

Why Silver?

From its current price being in the lower 20s per ounce, expert analyst David Morgan sees the silver potentially shooting up to US$50 per oz and even pushing up to US$100 if the US$50 wall is pierced. He said 2023 is a good year for silver and that if prices go up to US$32 or US$33, the trajectory will easily reach the US$50 level.

He attributed the demand growth prospect to the overall tight supply of silver, having a 200 million oz deficit. Morgan clarified that there is no shortage, but it is “difficult to source” silver at present.

“If [silver prices] gets to US$50, I don’t know if it will happen this year, but when it happens, there will be a sell-off for a while . . . and silver will base around US$35, US$40, or US$45 then regather its strength and shoot up through US$50,” Morgan said.

Consecutive Silver Explorations Amid Tight Supply

Terra has been expanding its exploration of the shallow Cumavici corridor at an accelerated pace, having reported multiple drill step out over the last few months.

Technical analyst Clive Maund flagged Terra as one of his top 3 metal stocks, as the company continues showing positive drilling results when it comes to silver. With the company confirming consistent high-grade polymetallic drill intercepts at its flagship project in Bosnia, and the future drilling program in Serbia, Terra Balcanica is set to benefit from increased silver price and demand.

Catalysts

As said earlier this month, Terra Balcanica Resources plans to enter the regional SE European battery metal exploration space. Further details surrounding this development will be released around mid-March.

Other than that, Terra will continue its Phase 2 7,000-meter diamond core drilling program at its flagship Viogor Zanik. This will be divided by target as:

Ownership and Share Structure

51.6 % of the company’s stock is held by management, insiders, and directors. Among the top investors in management, CEO Dr. Aleksandar Mišković owns 11.7% of Terra’s stock, with 9.21 million shares, according to Reuters. Co-founder and Director Aleksandar Ilić has 12.46%, with 9.0 million shares.

Non-Executive Chairman Giulio Bonifacio has 3.99%, with 2.93 million shares, and Director Brandon Bonifacio M.Eng., MBA is at 2.29%, with 2.15 million shares. An estimated 48.4% is in retail, according to the company, Investor Ideas writes.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Adriatic taps funding deal to progress Vares silver mine

Adriatic Metals has passed the halfway mark on construction of its high-grade Vares silver project in Bosnia & Herzegovina with its financial future secured following draw down of its first US$30m tranche from a $142.5m debt package.

The Balkans-focused, ASX-listed company opened its coffers to the $30m injection via senior secured debt with Orion Resource Partners on Friday as it pursues project completion and first concentrate production by September 2023.

A further $22.5m boost is also imminent pending final security documents and three more $30m tranches are expected be drawn down over the course of 2023.

The funding keeps Adriatic’s flagship Vares project on the straight-and-narrow and means a convertible bonds option will not be required, freeing up a further $20m for project development.

Aside from its debt funding deal Orion has also taken an 8.9 per cent interest in Adriatic via a $50m placement to the tune of some 24.2m shares.

This is another critical step towards de-risking the Project, and we remain on track to deliver first concentrates in Q3 2023.

Orion are aligned with our commitment to responsible mining and sustainability, via a $100,000 donation to the Adriatic Foundation, which will support valued community and environmental initiatives in Vares and Kakanj

The Adriatic Foundation was formed in 2021 to support legacy projects in education, health and environment for Vares, a once-thriving and picturesque inland mountain town whose largely-Bosnian population collapsed from 22,000 to fewer than 9000 in the 1990s during the collapse of Yugoslavia.

Funds are also allocated to nearby Kakanj, an industrial town home to some 37,000 people.

The Vares project is nestled near the two towns and boasts an ore reserve in its Rupice deposit of 7.3 million tonnes going 485 g/t silver and other metals equivalent.

Breaking that figure down sees a return of 202 g/t silver, 1.9 g/t gold, 5.7 per cent zinc, 3.6 per cent lead, 0.6 per cent copper and 0.23 per cent antimony, an alloy-hardening material.

The Vares processing plant is expected to churn out some 800,000tpa and Adriatic says it will have a sizeable high-grade stockpile to begin chewing through from the get-go.

Adriatic has mooted a 10-year mine life with potential to expand should the nearby Veovaca open pit mine where lead, zinc and barite extraction ceased in 1988 amid rising hostilities be revived.

Bosnia and Herzegovina and neighbouring Serbia where Adriatic also has interests are today considered favourable and stable mining jurisdictions.

Adriatic’s projects sit amid a host of major global players including Anglo-Australian Rio Tinto, China’s Zijin Mining Group, Brazilian giant Vale and the privately-owned Mineco.

With Vares fully-funded and expertise on tap in the local communities it appears to be all systems go for Adriatic in its pursuit to bring the project online in 2023, The West writes.

Construction at Adriatic Metals’ Vares high-grade silver project in Bosnia and Herzegovina is picking up speed

Construction at Adriatic Metals’ Vares high-grade silver project in Bosnia and Herzegovina is picking up speed as the company prepares to bring the project’s namesake underground mine and processing facility online next year. Adriatic says the project is now at the mid-way point and importantly remains on schedule and budget to deliver the first concentrate around September 2023.

The company says the past six months have been a whirlwind of activity with construction around the site’s surface infrastructure gathering pace.

Management states earthworks associated with the project’s Rupice mine are progressing as planned and are at around 56 per cent complete. The backfill pad is about 85 per cent finalised and 45 per cent of the work needed on the stockpile pad excavation has been done. Additionally, all geotechnical drilling for the backfill pad has been wrapped up.

In addition, the lower and upper decline of the underground mine is currently sitting at depths of 277m and 177m respectively for a total distance of 454m as of November 21.

A pair of diesel generators have been installed to give the operation a source of power. The devices will supply interim power to the Rupice mine ahead of the fitting of an underground cable grid link.

The operation’s 24.5km haul road is also said to be on track for first ore delivery early next year.

Along with the company’s construction efforts, it is also closing the loop on a year-long confirmation and definition drilling program at Rupice.

Recent exploratory programs have focussed on the Rupice’s northwest extension and intercepted a package of massive and semi-massive sulphide mineralisation that Adriatic believes could bolster the mine’s projected 10-year shelf life. The recent efforts confirmed an extension of mineralisation up to 250m north-west of the resource.

Notable intercepts from recent work include 0.9m at 846 grams per tonne silver equivalent and 27.2 per cent zinc equivalent from 207m including a 6.5m interval going 1861 g/t silver equivalent and 59.8 per cent zinc equivalent.

Another 32.5m hit was returned about 155m north-west of Rupice going 657 g/t silver equivalent and 21.1 per cent zinc equivalent from 285.5m. The wide strike also enclosed a richer 2m hit at 1331 g/t silver equivalent and 42.8 per cent zinc equivalent.

Adriatic began building the infrastructure for its Rupice mine in November last year after securing a financial facility a month prior.

The work follows a study by mining consultancy group CSA Global which suggested the project could hold a 12 million tonne resource grading 149 grams per tonne silver, 1.4 g/t gold, 4.1 per cent zinc, 2.6 per cent lead, 0.5 per cent copper and 25 per cent barite.

A subsequent definitive feasibility study released late last year says the operation could deliver an average EBITDA of US$281.1 million a year in its first five years of concentrate production, The West Australian reports.

Adriatic Metals builds underground mining fleet at Vares silver project

As Adriatic Metals gears up for first concentrate production at its Vares silver project in Bosnia & Herzegovina, it has revealed details of the mining fleet set to carry out work at the underground Rupice mine.

In its latest update, the company said project construction was 45% complete, with decline development progressing well – the lower decline currently being at at 210 m and upper decline at 100 m.

The majority of long-lead items and equipment orders were expected to come in on schedule, however global supply chain disruption has pushed first concentrate production from the end of the June quarter of 2023 into the September quarter, it said.

In the company’s 2021 definitive feasibility study, it shifted focus from a combined open pit and underground operation to an underground-only operation focused on Rupice, highlighting plans to mine 730,000 t/y of ore over a 10-year mine life.

In Adriatic’s most recent update, it highlighted that the fleet of vehicles required for Phase One (decline development) was on site, with delivery of Phase Two and Three vehicles commencing.

Among the fleet on site at Rupice is a Sandvik LH514i LHD, two Sandvik LH517i LHDs, a Cat 950L wheel loader, a Sandvik TH545i truck (second unit arriving in December), an Epiroc Boomer 282 jumbo drill, two Sandvik DD320 jumbos, two Sandvik DS311 rock bolters, two Titan IS26 shotcrete sprayers, three Titan BYM 6.0 underground mixer trucks and a Titan EC2 explosive charger.

Adriatic said the final project cost estimate had increased marginally from $170 million to $173 million, due to increases in engineering costs, plant and electrical equipment, including adjustments based on recent contract awards.

For the Vares silver project lower costs

An updated definitive feasibility study (DFS) for the Vares silver project, in Bosnia & Herzegovina, has seen capital costs decline while the project’s net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR) have increased.

ASX-listed Adriatic Metals this week reported that an updated capital cost estimate for the Vares silver project had estimated that the project would require a $168-million investment, compared with the $173-million estimated in the 2020 DFS

The updated DFS has also increased the project’s post tax NPV from the $1.04-billion reported in the original DFS to $1.06-billion, while the IRR has increased from 113% to 134%.

The pay-back period has declined from 1.2 years to 0.7 years, while the project’s all-in sustaining cost estimates have declined from $9.70/oz to $7.30/oz of silver

“The completion of the 2021 DFS is a major milestone for the company, and clearly demonstrates the exceptional potential of the Vares silver project”, said Adriatic MD and CEO Paul Cronin.

“Project delivery and execution risks have been substantially reduced through the simplification of the process flowsheet and initial capital costs lowered against the backdrop of inflationary construction costs, whilst improving the overall project economics. In the design of this project, environmental and economic sustainability have been at the core of our thinking, shaping the project to ensure that its economic and environmental benefits extend well beyond the current mine life, and provide a perpetual benefit to our local community in Vares and indeed, to the BiH economy”.

Cronin said that the company’s focus would now be on finalising project financing, which is well advanced, and concurrently starting constructio,n while continuing to look for marginal improvements in metallurgical recovery, and capital and operating costs.

“Additionally, we have commenced a study to expand the renewable energy production we have at the Vares processing plant, and [to] augment that capacity to ensure that the Vares silver project reduces its carbon emissions significantly, soon after the commencement of commercial production. As demonstrated in our recent exploration results, we are confident that we can expand the resources and reserves at the Vares project and look forward to working with the Vares community for decades to come, jointly demonstrating the benefits of mining operations in a European context”.

Source: Mining Weekly