M&A

Ambitious, experienced Jervois looking at integrated US-Brazil nickel-cobalt

Cobalt mine to be developed in Idaho while third party nickel feed initially sought

This article is 4 years old. Images might not display.

The Sao Miguel Paulista refinery is costing Jervois $22 million in staged payments between now and mid-2023, and has a stated production capacity of 25,000t of nickel and 2000t of cobalt.

Potential capex required for SMP has been provisionally estimated at $13.5-27 million.

Jervois envisages refining concentrate production from its Idaho mine and returning cobalt metal to the US.

The Idaho mine is estimated to have a total project capital cost of $78.4 million.

The project's post-tax net present value is put at $95.7 million and its internal rate of return at 40.6%, using a cobalt price of $25 per pound.

The current cobalt price is about $16/lb.

Jervois is aiming to bring Idaho into production in mid-2022, with financing the current focus.

With regards the refinery, the company sees the potential to accelerate a restart based on third party feedstocks, with output from the Idaho project to subsequently compliment such feed.

Further down the track it sees product from its potential Nico Young laterite development in Australia also being a feed source.

Jervois' board and management have strong experience in refining given background involving Murrin Murrin, Nikkelverk and Kwinana.

Jervois had A$5.8 million in cash at the start of the current quarter.

Shares in Jervois were up 8% to 32.5c in morning trade, capitalising the company at $209 million.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining News Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining News Intelligence team.

editions

Mining Company ESG Index: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The Mining Company ESG Index report provides an in-depth evaluation of ESG performance of 61 of the world's largest mining companies. Using a robust framework, it assesses each company across 9 meticulously weighted indicators within 6 essential pillars.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Global Leadership Report 2024: Net Zero

Gain insights into decarbonisation trends and strategies from interviews with 20+ top mining executives and experts plus an industrywide survey.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Project Pipeline Handbook 2024

View our 50 top mining projects, handpicked using a unique, objective selection process from a database of 450+ global assets.

editions

MiningNews.net Research Report 2024

Access a multi-pronged tool to identify critical risks and opportunities in Australia’s mining industry.