Bear Creek Mining (TSXV: BCM) announced that it has completed a review of the 2017 NI 43-101 Technical Report entitled Corani Project Detailed Engineering Phase 1 (FEED) for the Corani silver, lead, zinc deposit in Peru.
In a press release, Bear Creek said that the objectives of the review were to reduce typical construction, development and operating risks and to identify potential improvements to Corani’s expected economic performance.
“The results of the review include a 20% increase in daily production, a $126 million (31%) increase in after-tax Net Present Value, a 52% increase in after-tax Internal Rate of Return from 15.1% to 22.9%, a 1.2 year (33%) reduction in the payback period, lower All-In-Sustaining-Costs and significantly reduced construction, development and operating risks,” the media statement reads.
The review also revealed that projected silver production totalling 49 million ounces during the first three operating years would make Corani one of the world’s largest silver producers.
According to Anthony Hawkshaw, Bear Creek’s president and CEO, byproduct lead and zinc credits make a significant contribution to Corani’s expected AISC of $1.36 per ounce of silver for years one through three, resulting in capital payback in less than 30 months of the projected 15-year mine life.
Corani is located in the Andes mountains of Peru, approximately 160 kilometers southeast of Cusco in a sparsely populated high-mountain desert environment.
The project consists of 13 mineral concessions that form a contiguous block of ground covering approximately 5,700 hectares.