Coeur Completes Bolnisi, Palmarejo Acquisitions



Mine development activity under way at Coeur d’Alene Mines’ Palmarejo silver-gold project in Mexico.
In late December 2007, Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. said it had successfully completed its acquisition of Bolnisi Gold NL and Palmarejo Silver and Gold Corp., following shareholder approval of the $1.1- billion transaction earlier in the month.

Bolnisi Gold is an Australian company with a portfolio of precious metals projects in Mexico which includes the Palmarejo silver-gold project in Chihuahua; the Yecora gold-silver project in Sonora, and the El Realito gold-silver project, also in Chihuahua. Palmarejo is an exploration and development company focused on gold and silver properties in the Temoris District of Chihuahua, Mexico.

The Palmarejo project is expected to begin production in just over a year at an annualized rate of approximately 10.4 million oz of silver and 115,000 oz/y Au with estimated cash costs, net of gold byproduct credits, of $0.41/oz of silver and an initial mine life of nine years. Exploration continues on the project’s land package, with current measured and indicated mineral resources of 88.7 million oz silver and 1 million oz gold.

The Idaho, USA-based company also announced that commissioning of a new 240-mt/d mill at the company’s highgrade Martha silver mine in southern Argentina began during December, with the first shipment of concentrate expected in January. The new facility was completed in nine months at a cost of approximately $15 million and will accommodate annual production of as much as 3 million oz of silver. Previously, Martha ore was shipped 270 miles to the company’s Cerro Bayo mine in Chile for processing. With the commissioning of this new mill at Martha, these transportation costs will be eliminated.

Since purchasing Martha for $2.5 million in 2002, the company has extracted more than 11.5 million oz of silver and has increased Martha’s mineral reserves and mineral resources. In the first half of 2007, Martha produced approximately 1.4 million oz of silver and as of June 30, 2007, proven and probable reserves totaled 7.6 million oz, a 25% increase compared with year-end 2006 levels.


As featured in Womp 08 Vol 1 - www.womp-int.com