ASX-listed and Oman-based copper miner Alara Resources (ASX:AUQ) will turn into a producer next Monday, the date it expects to ship its first lot of copper from the project.
Shares in Alara were up 12% in response to the news, no doubt driven in part by record high copper prices currently grabbing commodity watchers’ eyes everywhere.
Another reason investors are loving the news: revenue generation will now begin as we head into FY25.
Worth noting is that the shipment will not be purely copper but in fact a copper gold concentrate produced at Al Wash-hi Majazza.
The concentrate is ready, Alara wrote on Tuesday, awaiting its loading on board the ship next Monday. The company described the event as a looming milestone for the 51%-Alara-owned JV project.
However, the company noted on Tuesday that the tailings filter press (TFP) on-site the project remains subject to challenges, company engineers are now working on this asset to provide the best operational performance.
“These are exciting times for the global copper mining sector, which is urgently seeking new deposits around the world,” Alara chief Atmavireshwar Sthapak said.
“Alara, which has recently begun producing copper concentrate in Oman, is eager to collaborate with its joint venture partners to explore Oman’s promising geology in the hope of making additional copper-gold finds.”
The company also announced on Tuesday its receipt of a renewal from the Omani government of its Block 8 exploration rights.
That block has been pending renewal since 2013 according to Alara; the 487sq.km boundary envelope now sits back on Alara’s books as a working asset with all overhead permissions granted.
Exploration works will imminently resume on-site.
“We are very grateful to the Ministry of Energy and Minerals and our joint venture partners in Awtad Copper LLC for concluding this long-pending exploration license renewal process,” Sthapak added.
“With the grant of a mining concession over Block 22B and the renewal of this license, Alara and partners now have the right to explore more than 1900 km2 ground in Oman.”
AUQ last traded at 7.4cps.