Listed company Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. (FNI) reported a successful 5.624 million dry metric tons (DMT) of total resources as a result of its subsidiary Platinum Group Metals Corp.’s drilling operations in the Cagdianao Area 3 (CAGA 3) deposit.
This translates to roughly 80 percent increase reflected over the last estimate on June 30, 2016.
“This result highlights the effectiveness of our planned exploration program and the exploration potential of Cagdianao areas 6 and 7 which remain unexplored,” FNI President Dante Bravo said.
However, FNI did not provide further details about the value of the additional resources due to the dynamic pricing in the world market.
Measured and indicated resources stand at 12.809 million DMT with an average rate of 1.2 percent nickel and 27.5 percent iron.
Meanwhile, material mix consists of 75 percent medium-grade (9.588 million DMT), 14 percent high-grade (1.827 million DMT), and 11 percent low-grade (1.394 million DMT).
Further, an additional inferred resources of over 2.196 million DMT, which consists of an average grade of 1.12 percent nickel and 20.11 percent iron, can be extracted in the CAGA 3 mine.
FNI’s drilling and exploration operations focus on increasing its existing resource inventory, as well as converting and upgrading its inferred and indicated resources in all seven CAGA mining areas in Claver, Surigao del Norte.
“A key part of our strategy is to continuously upgrade our resource and reserve base within the Cagdianao deposit areas,” Bravo said.
FNI, formerly Southeast Asia Cement Holdings, Inc., is the second largest nickel producer in the country and the sole largest lateritic mine exporter in the world.
The company owns two laterite nickel mines located in Surigao and Palawan.