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The Troy ore body was discovered by Bear Creek Mining (Kennecott) in the early 1960's, and was later optioned to ASARCO to develop and operate. Revett Silver acquired the property in two transactions consolidating ownership to 100%. Previously Troy was held 75% by ASARCO and 25% by Kennecott.
ASARCO developed a conventional 8,500 ton per day (7,700 mtpd), underground room and pillar operation at Troy in 1980, and operated the mine until early 1993. The mine was shutdown and placed on care-and-maintenance due to low metals prices with the intent of reopening when economics warranted.
Late in 2003, when metals prices began to improve, three increasingly detailed engineering and economic assessments were preformed on the known 8.7 million ton reserve (@ 1.57opt Ag & 0.65% Cu). The company made its production decision in April 2004.
The optimal mine plan called for a 6,500 ton per day operation that would produce at an average rate of 3.2 Moz of silver, and 26 Mlbs of copper annually, for a mine life of 31¦2 years. Additional resources in the mine may extend the life to at least 5 years. Initial restart capital was budgeted at US$5.3 million, with an additional US$3 million in working capital.
Hiring and rehabilitation commenced in May 2004 with first concentrate being produced in December 2004. Initial direct capital was US$ 3.8 million with additional working capital forecast to be approximately US$ 2.2 million. First concentrates were shipped in January 2005 and we expect to reach positive cash flows during the second quarter 2005.
© Copyright 2010, Revett Minerals, Inc.
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