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Mining approval received for Araguaia nickel project in Brazil - Horizonte Minerals

Kitco Media
By Vladimir Basov
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(Kitco News) - Horizonte Minerals (TSX: HZM) announced today that it has received its mining approval permit for its 100%-owned Araguaia nickel project in Brazil.

The approval was issued by the Pará State Secretariat for Environment and Sustainability (SEMAS) and enables Horizonte to commence its mining activities, with initial work underway to establish ore stockpiles on the ROM pad ahead of the commissioning phase.

In a statement, Horizonte said that the approval enables the company to mine, stockpile, and categorize ore, optimizing the consistency of the feedstock, a process required to mitigate risk during commissioning which is a key part of the mine-to-mill strategy.

The company added that over the course of the next six months, stockpiles will be established, with sufficient ore to feed the plant for the subsequent six months.

The Pequizeiro pit, located 750 metres from the plant site, will be the primary source of ore to Araguaia, supplying the first two years of the project’s mine life and contributing over 50% of the mine production for the first ten years.

CEO Jeremy Martin commented, “I am pleased to announce the approval to begin mining activities at Araguaia, another important milestone for Horizonte. The approval allows ore to be mined and stockpiled with the aim of mitigating a key commissioning risk as part of our mine-to-mill strategy ahead of the plant start-up next year.”

Horizonte Minerals is developing two 100%-owned, tier one projects in Pará state, Brazil, the Araguaia nickel project and the Vermelho nickel-cobalt project.

Araguaia is under construction with first metal scheduled for Q1 2024. When fully ramped up, it is forecast to produce 29,000 tonnes of nickel per year. Vermelho is at feasibility study stage and is expected to produce 24,000 tonnes of nickel and 1,250 tonnes of cobalt to supply the EV battery market.

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Vladimir Basov

Vladimir (PhD, MEng in Mining) is a professional mining engineer, scientist and analyst that has more than 20 years of practical in-field and research experience. He is particularly interested in collecting, processing baseline data and writing insightful data-driven mining industry analytics, articles, statistical and research reports.

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