Name of the Project
Citronen lead/zinc project.

Location
North-east Greenland.

Project Owner/s
Ironbark Zinc.

Project Description
A bankable feasibility study (BFS) has shown Citronen to have robust economics. The 2021 BFS represents the first ground-up evaluation of the project in a decade and supersedes the feasibility study published in September 2017.

The 3.3-million-tonne-year operation has a significantly expanded ore reserve of 48.8-million tonnes grading 4.8% zinc and 0.5% lead. Mineral resources are estimated at 85-million tonnes grading 4.7% zinc and 0.5% lead.

The openpit and underground operation will treat an average grade of 4.7% zinc and 0.5% lead over an initial 20-year mine life.

The mine schedule has been optimised to prioritise zinc grade in the early years of production, with the highest-grade zone – Beach zone – being prioritised for milling. Feed from the underground operation will be supplemented with ore from the Discovery openpit.

Waste rock generated during the initial development of the openpit and underground operations will be used as fill for construction purposes, while an openpit ore stockpile will be generated ahead of the start of processing.

The updated flowsheet for the project processing circuit involves crushing, dense-media separation, milling and a flotation circuit.

The project has shown substantial exploration upside.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an after-tax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of $363-million and an internal rate of return of 15.2%.

Capital Expenditure
Capital expenditure has increased from $514-million in the 2017 BFS to $654-million in the 2021 BFS.

Planned Start/End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Ironbark Zinc has started a strategic review of its Citronen asset, and is considering a range of options, including an outright project sale, majority sell-down to a new co-owner or spinout.

Citronen has been a difficult asset to develop over the past several years of heightened macroeconomic uncertainty and volatile markets.

Ironbark has highlighted  that there are not many base metal projects of similar scale and maturity with an approved mining licence, a completed BFS and 70% of offtake presold to tier-one counterparties.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Ironbark Zinc, tel +61 8 6146 5325 or email admin@ironbark.gl.