presentation to symposium investor seminar

18
Sydney & Melbourne, April 2010 Disclaimer No representation or warranty is made as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained herein. Any forward-looking information in this presentation has been prepared on the basis of a number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. This presentation should not be relied upon as a recommendation or forecast by Icon Resources Ltd. Mt Carbine Tungsten Mt Carbine Tungsten Project, North Qld Project, North Qld

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Dr John Bishop, Managing Director of Icon Resources, presented to an investor forum run by Symposium.

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Sydney & Melbourne, April 2010Disclaimer

No representation or warranty is made as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained herein. Any forward-looking information in this presentation has been prepared on the basis of a number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect. This presentation should not be relied upon as a recommendation or forecast by Icon

Resources Ltd.

Mt Carbine Tungsten Mt Carbine Tungsten Project, North QldProject, North Qld

Page 2: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Near-term tungsten producerRe-developing one of Australia’s largest tungsten minesSuite of other base and precious metal projects in Eastern AustraliaExperienced, technical board and management

Page 3: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

ASX-listed resource company: code III 92M shares issued plus 23M unlisted options Current share price ~9c (Market Cap: ~$8M) Cash in hand: ~$0.6M Board of Directors:

Dr Leon Pretorius, ChairmanDr John Bishop, Managing DirectorSteve Bartrop, Non-exec. DirectorDr Andy White, Non-exec. Director

III share price April ‘09 – April ‘10

6c

9c

12c

Page 4: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

W: heavy, high-temp, hard-wearing (as tungsten carbide)Use: ‘hard metal’ tools (cutting, machining, drilling);steel alloys; light globe filaments; golf clubs, etcno known substitute for many applications China has ~65% of global ‘reserves’ but is a net importer ROW Security of Supply concerns: very little production outside of China and no current (significant) production in Australia

Economic minerals of tungsten

Wolframite

ScheeliteMt Carbine trial concentrates,

2008Global production: ~56kt

W (= ~71kt WO3)

Page 5: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Tungsten below most analysts’ radar, but…….Demand is predicted to increase as developing nations increase their manufacturing capabilitiesRoskill’s predict >12% supply shortage in 2015 (below)

Supply > Demand above white line; Demand > Supply below white line

Page 6: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Tungsten not (yet) traded on LME; confidential contractsTungsten price is commonly referenced to ammonium para-tungstate or APT, with raw concentrates 70-75% APT priceSustained tungsten prices up x4 (in US$) in recent years Price down ~20% (in US$) in 2009, but showing signs of recovery (wolframite 65% concentrates selling for US$165 per mtu in April ‘10)

*100 metric tonne units (mtu) = 1 tonne

US$/

mtu

One year APT (above) in US$/mtu and concentrate (below) in Rmb/mtu

APT five year price chart (US$/mtu*)

Page 7: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Historically one of the world’s largest tungsten minesExcellent potential to start up again with a much larger resource base Produced premium concentrates of wolframite and scheeliteMine closed due to low prices in mid-80s with a decline partially developed to access underground resource Positive Scoping Study completed 2009Tungsten forecast to be in short supply when mine re-opens in late ’12–early ‘13

Page 8: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Granted Mining LeasesSealed roads and power through the Mine LeasesExisting tailings storage facilities with several years capacity Several options for water Mine site is ~45mins drive from dormitory towns of Port Douglas and Mareeba, Port of Cairns ~120kms on sealed road

Plan view of Mt Carbine open cut, tailings and dumps, and mine lease

boundaries

old working

Page 9: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Positive Scoping Study completed in late 2009Resource currently being expanded and upgraded with drilling campaignPreparing for bulk metallurgical testing of ore-sorters and processingMarkets identified with received expressions of interest exceeding planned annual production of ~2400t of WO3Pre-feasibility study scheduled for completion by end of 2010

Open Cut , 1986

Page 10: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Positive Scoping Study completed in October 2009Study modelled a 1.5Mtpa open cut operation with a strip ratio of 1.7 for a resource of 7.2Mt @ 0.21% WO3 producing ~2350t of WO3 per yearExcellent potential to increase life of mine by accessing sparsely-drilled adjacent mineralisation (currently underway)Mine planned to re-open late 2012 – early 2013

           

 

Cash Cost1

per MTU

Capital Cost2 per

MTU

Production Cost per

MTU

Margin3 per MTU  

     A$144 A$54 A$198 A$52                

1. Includes mining, processing, freight, royalties, admin, pre-tax2. Estimated capex of A$60M3. Assuming the long-term revenue of A$250 per MTU n.b. These values are at scoping level accuracy: +/- 30% (1 MTU of concentrate is 1/100 of a tonne

or 10kg of WO3)

Page 11: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

The base-case model gives a project net cash flow (after capex, admin, royalties, but before tax) of $59M or NPV of 38 cents per share at 8% discount (using 92M shares issued). But reconciliation of model grade with historical records suggest in situ grade is 20% higher Combined with an achievable 50% increase in tonnage, this gives a cash flow of close to $200M or NPV of ~$1.40 per share IRR moves from ~27% to 47%

Page 12: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Limited prior drilling outside of existing open cut, but good intersections close to edge of defined mineralisation indicate likely extensionsCurrently drilling these areas to increase the resourcePlan view below includes all legacy drillholes. Intersections >0.1% WO3 in purple

Grades for all previous drilling were visually estimated. Icon now assaying by lab. XRF

Page 13: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar
Page 14: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

~4500m HQ core drilling campaign underway to enlarge and upgrade the known resourceTen holes, totalling ~2300m, completed: program is ongoingVisible mineralisation intersected in all holesProgram has partially tested the Iron Duke Zone to the NE of the open cut and NW extensions of the zones mined by the open cut

Scheelite from Iron Duke (CB51) fluorescing under

ultraviolet lightIcon drilling in red, Legacy drilling in blue

Page 15: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

1. Only one hole has tested extensive adjacent old workings –and intersected a ‘blind’ lode

2. Potential for old waste dump to carry ‘grade’ material (previously reported as 0.07% WO3). Scheduled for bulk assaying.

3. Potential for old ‘reject’ dump to be profitably re-run through latest generation ore-sorters. Scheduled for bulk assaying.

4. Tailings: totalling approx 2Mt @ 0.11% WO3 (JORC compliant)

Plan view of Mt Carbine open cut, tailings, dumps and old workings

WASTE DUMP

REJECT DUMP

Page 16: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Aerial view of Mt Carbine as an operating mine, 1978

Page 17: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

“Tungsten – the next sexy metal?” (‘Strictly Boardroom’, Aug ‘09)

“Increasing deficit in tungsten from 2013 on” (Roskill, Sep ‘09)

“In 2012, it will be tin, tungsten & molybdenum” (CRU, Oct’09)

Mt Carbine is one of these significant projects

Haywood Securities, Talking Tungsten PDAC, Mar 2009

Page 18: Presentation to Symposium Investor Seminar

Mt Carbine was a world-class tungsten mine and has excellent potential to be so againTungsten predicted to be in significant deficit from 2013 when the mine is scheduled to be back in productionDrilling program underway to increase and upgrade the resourceProject value not yet reflected in Icon’s share priceGold, tin and base-metal projects in Eastern Australia will be progressed in parallel with Mt Carbine

Contact DetailsDr John Bishop, Managing DirectorEmail : [email protected] Mobile : 0418 373 429

Sydney Office Suite 404, 25 Lime St, Sydney, 2000Phone: 02 9279 1252

Wolframite, Mt Carbine