Tungsten

[Tackler]

Tiberon upbeat about Nui Phao project economics

2005-07-12 09:25 ET - News Release

Mr. Mario Caron reports

NUI PHAO FINAL FEASIBILITY STUDY SHOWS SIGNIFICANT ECONOMIC IMPROVEMENT -- IRR INCREASES TO 23.6% -- NPV (7.5%) INCREASES 2.1 TIMES -- TUNGSTEN RECOVERY UP TO 66%; BISMUTH RECOVERY DOUBLES -- OPERATING CASH FLOW UP 50% -- CAPEX UP 9% TO US$229.8 MILLION; OP COSTS DOWN 4%

Tiberon Minerals Ltd., on behalf of the Nui Phao Mining Joint Venture Company Ltd. (Nuiphaovica), has completed a positive final feasibility study for its 77.5-per-cent-owned Nui Phao tungsten/fluorspar deposit in Vietnam. Prepared by Aker Kvaerner, the study highlights improved metallurgical recoveries and lower operating costs, producing a higher rate of return and net present value.

The study favourably concludes that an open-pit mine can now produce 76,000 tonnes of tungsten trioxide, 3.5 million tonnes of acid-grade fluorspar concentrate, 32,000 tonnes of bismuth, along with copper and gold over a 16.3-year mine life, generating a 23.6-per-cent rate of return.

"The results of the study confirm that Tiberon will become a leader in the tungsten/fluorspar industry as one of the world's largest and lowest-cost producers of these strategic commodities," said Tiberon's chief executive officer, Mario Caron. "With the recent receipt of our mining licence and environmental impact assessment approval earlier this year, we remain firmly on track to meet our projected start-up and commissioning in the latter part of 2007."