Highlights

Berong Mining Area

Atlas, through its joint venture (JV) company, the Berong Nickel Corporation (BNC), which is being managed by TMM Management Inc. (a 60% subsidiary of Atlas), is involved in laterite nickel production. BNC’s mine is located in Barangay Berong, Quezon Municipality. Quezon is in Palawan Province, located in the western part of the Philippines. 

Laterite nickel mineralization is the weathering product of the olivine-rich ultramafic igneous host rock, and is found at and near the surface. 

Start of Metallurgical Testing and Commercial Production

A Special Mines Permit was issued on November 24, 2006 for the 288-hectare area in Berong which is covered by Atlas’ Application AMA-IVB-047 for Mineral Sharing Agreement (MPSA).  This enabled BNC to mine laterite nickel ore that was shipped to China in the first week of February, 2007 for metallurgical testing which yielded positive results. Thereafter, the Application for MPSA was approved in June 2007 by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources as MPSA No.235-2007-IVB. BNC signed a five-year supply contract, extendible for another five years, with Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd. (QNPL), a BHP Billiton subsidiary, where the delivered ore (minimum of 500,000 WMT per year and at least 1.5% Ni) will be processed at the QNPL’s Yabulu Refinery in Queensland, Australia. Shipments have been on a “Free on Board” (FOB) basis which means the customers handle their own shipping requirements. A total of 13 shipments, comprising 530,168.24 WMT of ore and averaging a tonnage-weighted 1.52% Ni, were shipped in 2007. Large, 35-tonne articulated dump trucks suited for muddy conditions were used in the mine site. The laterite nickel ore was hauled to a coastal stockpile about 17 kilometers from the mining area.

Mineral Resource Estimate

BNC’s Project area has a combined pre-JORC resource of approximately 275 million tons of nickel ore at 1.3%Ni.

In 2007, BNC engaged the services of Snowden Mining Industry Consultants Pty. of Australia to conduct an independent review of a portion of the pre-JORC resource according to internationally accepted standards and methodology of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves or The JORC Code.  Tabulated are the results based on a cut-off grade of 1% nickel: 

In addition, an Inferred Resource totaling 1.01 million WMT averaging 1.50% Ni was identified using the same cut-off grade.

Snowden’s estimation was based on almost 14,000 meters of channel samples from dominantly 25-meter spaced NQ drillholes with more than 99% recovery, and from test pit samples with equivalent sample volume.  The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) validated the estimate which led to the ensuing Declaration of Mining Feasibility by the MGB, and the subsequent commercial production in the MPSA area.

Berong Mine Site Area

Berong Ore Stock Pile Area