Norilsk Nickel to complete reserve assessment at Syradasai coal field in 2012
MOSCOW. March 21 (Interfax) - MMC Norilsk Nickel plans to complete an assessment of C2 category prospective coal reserves at the Syradasai deposit near the port of Dikson on the Taimyr Peninsula by the end of 2012, after which it will make a final decision on the amount of investment and development prospects for this deposit, an official at the Russian mining giant told Interfax.
The Syradasai deposit, the coal from which will be aimed at the export market, has P2+P3 forecast resources of 5.3 billion tonnes.
Norilsk Nickel in 2009 announced plans to mine 8 million-15 million tonnes of coking coal at this deposit, but these figures are tentative, the company official said. The project is now at the stage of a prospective field and a final decision on Norilsk Nickel's investments in coal mining has not been made yet.
The development of the field will require the construction of an enrichment plant, a coal loading terminal, 80-km rail line and a power plant.
If it decides to go ahead with the development of Syradasai, Norilsk Nickel could raise project financing from banks, the official said.
Norilsk Nickel initially planned to develop Syradasai with BHP Billiton, but joint exploration projects in Russia were suspended due to lack of prospects.
Norilsk Nickel acquired the license to Syradasai in February 2008. At the time, investment in the coal project was estimated at more than $1 billion. Following exploration of the deposit, the company hoped to book 5.5 billion tonnes of coal reserves, including 5 billion tonnes of coking coal and 500 million tonnes of steam coal.
