Name of the Project
Merlin diamond mine restart.

Location
Northern Territory, Australia.

Project Owner/s
Lucapa Diamond Company.

Project Description
Lucapa plans to restart production at the Merlin diamond mine.

The mine comprises two phases.

Phase 1, which comprises the Gawain, Ywain, Palomides, Sacramore and Excalibur pits, will use excavator dredging to mine to a depth of 15 m from the base of the five existing openpits. An estimated 67 000 ct are expected to be recovered in this phase.

Phase 2 will use vertical pit mining to extract ore from the Gawain pit and will recover about 
247 000 ct.

Drill-and-blast methods will be used to mine the openpit waste. Mechanical mining using a surface miner will be used for ore mining in the openpit and all vertical pit mining. 

The development of the decline and crosscuts will be conducted by conventional drill-and-
blast.

A 355 000 t/y process plant will be built on the existing plant site, primarily using equipment already available at Merlin.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a forecast pretax net present value, at a 10% discount rate, of A$40-million and an internal rate of return of 75%.

Capital Expenditure
Phase 1 requires A$15-million in funding, with A$9-million as preproduction capital.
Phase 2 requires A$10-million in funding for a proposed five-year mine life with extension potential.

Planned Start/End Date
Phase 1 will be conducted over 18 months, with Phase 2 following for 27 months.

Latest Developments
None stated.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Not disclosed.

Contact Details for Project Information
Lucapa Diamond Company, tel +61 8 9381 5995 or email general@lucapa.com.au.