I-Minerals Files 43-101 / highlights
Vancouver, B.C. (January 19, 2011) -- i-minerals inc. (TSX.V: IMA; Pink Sheets: IMAHF) (“the Company”) has filed a National Instrument 43-101 technical report regarding the Preliminary Economic Analysis ("the PEA”) on its Bovill Kaolin Deposit ”( the "Project”) located in north central Idaho. A summary of the technical report was announced on December 5, 2011. The Study was compiled by SRK Consulting (US) Inc. ("SRK”) who also completed the Mineral Resource estimation. Tetra Tech (“TT”) was commissioned by the Company to complete environmental, geotechnical, and site reclamation engineering and design. Roberts & Schaefer (“R&S) was commissioned to complete the design for the planned processing and product packaging facilities. Values for the mineral products used in the economic analysis were provided by Charles Rivers Associates and Durtec GmbH. The technical report has been filed on SEDAR and I-Minerals’ website.
Highlights of the Study Include:
· US$155 million After Tax NPV
· 29% IRR
· Total Life of Mine Capital costs $64.8 million
· 38.4 million short tons of resources
· 50+ year mine life with 0.26:1 strip ratio
· 3 year estimated payback (2 years net of expected loss carry forward)
Dr. Bart Stryhas constructed the geologic and resource model. He is responsible for the resource estimation methodology and the resource statement. Dr. Stryhas is independent of the issuer applying all of the tests in Section 1.4 of NI 43-101.
The Inferred Mineral Resource of 38.4 million short tons is based upon a cut-off grade of 20% clay and represents the largest deposits of high quality feldspar, quartz, kaolin and halloysite in the Western United States. The primary clay material has estimated mass percentages as follows: halloysite (6.6%), kaolin (16.7%), quartz (29.7%) and k-spar (13.0%) yielding a weighted average product price of US$240 per ton. Resources can support a mine life of well in excess of 50 years; however initial indicative economics were performed assuming a 25+-year market for primary clay products. The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable such resources to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is no certainty that the preliminary assessment will be realized.
The Company has subsequently completed a 66 drill hole program and is undertaking detailed metallurgical work to confirm halloysite and kaolin content. Once completed, the metallurgical results will be folded into a pre-feasibility study along with a re-assessment of the capital and operating cost estimates. As part of the re-assessment of capital and operating costs the Company will look at alternate locations closer to the proposed mine site for the mill facility and tailings storage.
The Company is making significant progress in the marketing of its minerals. A pilot plant run has been completed yielding over 4,000 pounds of quartz products. Portions of this material is currently being fine ground for delivery to prospective customers in a variety of industries including specialty lighting and solar glass for melt tests and other testing. Durtec GmbH has provided halloysite samples to a number of major international corporations for testing in green energy technologies, plastics and polymers, cosmetics and other life sciences applications. Testing by a variety of prospective customers has demonstrated I-Minerals can readily produce an industry leading k-spar product.
“Marketing of the mineral products is the critical element for the success of every industrial minerals project,” commented Thomas Conway President and CEO of I-Minerals Inc. “With the strong progress we have made over the past year we have got the interest of many prospective customers and the high purity of our quartz has caused several new customers to seek us out. All of the incremental work we complete only furthers our confidence that the Bovill Kaolin Deposit offers the Company exceptional opportunities.”
I-minerals inc.
per: “Thomas M. Conway”
Thomas M. Conway,
President & CEO
