Pan Asia confirms additional coal seams in TCM
Monday, April 30 2012 - 05:43 AM WIB
Australia listed coal miner Pan Asia has on April 30 stated that four of its exploration drill holes (TCM 051 ? TCM 04) totaling 997 meters in the northern part of its PT Transcoal Minergy (TCM) Project in South Kalimantan had confirmed coal seams continuing from the south. The identified SU and SM seams, targeted for underground exploitation, as being shallower than expected with parting between the seams narrowing to the north.
?This leads to the possibility of either extending the current TCM mine plan and design to the north and or a second independent underground mine development plan for the northern section,? the company stated in its quarterly activities report ended March 2012.
As a result of the four drillings, Pan Asia had also commissioned additional wide space drilling program covering all the concession area announced on April 12, expected to discover up to 200 to 220 million tons of total resource of 6500 ? 6800 CV (adb) coal through 6 holes drilling at 2,470 meters.
Drilling to date on the TCM concession is mounting to a total of 54 drill holes, with a total advance of 15,371 meters. TCM?s JORC Resource calculation, undertaken by Kopex Mining Contractors following the completion of 35 boreholes, reaches a total of 53,237,303 tons in January 31, 2011, up by 115.30 percent from the measurement done on October 17 in the same year.
The company has also restructured its arrangements with Ranrich Investment Limited.
Ranrich, a company controlled by Honardy Boentario, and Innovation West Pty Ltd, a company wholly owned by Pan Asia, initially entered into an agreement in 2010 for the refinancing of and investment in various coal projects, in which the repayment of the finance was based on Ranrich making contracted coal shipments to designated buyers arranged by West.
Ranrich, however, failed to meet its obligation. During this quarter, a Memorandum of Agreement was executed in Jakarta, agreeing for a number of solutions, including that Ranrich will repay Pan Asia at the outstanding amount of US$4.5 million, while Pan Asia exchanged its right to earn a 50 percent interest in BCKP for a royalty of US$1 per ton on all coal sold from the BCKP IUP, limited to a total of US$15 million. The signed MoA also obliged Ranrich to deliver its current outstanding contracted shipments of 220,000 tons of coal to Noble, Pan Asia?s designated buyer (now 170,000 tons). Pan Asia paid back its outstanding loan of AUD $1.821 million to Noble in March.
?It has been a good quarter for us, with the TCM project showing potential to double in size and the Ranricj restructuring allowing the company to focus on adding value to the flagship TCM Project. With the feasibility study out shortly, we are poised to really add some value this year,? said Pan Asia CEO Alan Hopkins, adding that the TCM Project feasibility study draft is expected to come out in mid May.
Editing by Audy Zandri