Name of the Project
Vareš silver project.

Location
Vareš municipality of the Zenica-Doboj Canton, in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Project Owner/s
ASX- and LSE-listed Adriatic Metals.

Project Description
Vareš has a nameplate capacity of 800 000 t/y. Production is estimated at 90 000 t/y of zinc concentrate and 65 000 t/y of silver/lead concentrate.

The project has a 15-year mine life, and comprises the Rupice underground deposit and the Veovača openpit deposit. 

The operation is fully mechanised, with a simple processing flow sheet. 

The project uses transverse longhole open stoping and longitudinal longhole open stoping mining methods.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project’s net present value has increased from $1.04-billion, at an 8% discount rate in the 2020 prefeasibility study (PFS), to $1.06-billion in the DFS, while the internal rate of return has increased from 113% to 134%. Project payback from first production has decreased from 1.2 years to seven months.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital costs have decreased from $173-million in the PFS to $168-million in the DFS.

Planned Start/End Date
The project achieved commercial production in July 2025.

Latest Developments
Adriatic Metals has achieved commercial production.

The company declared commercial production after reaching sustained plant throughput levels of 75% over 14 days, including 80% over seven days, and achieving 90% nameplate capacity of 2 000 t/d in late June.

The milestone comes after resolving earlier constraints tied to tailings management. Construction of the Veovača tailings storage facility was completed in March, with tailings deposition starting on April 2. A dedicated access road connecting the Vareš processing plant to the storage facility has also been completed and in operation for the past month.

Underground development at the Rupice mine is also advancing, with about 900 m completed in the second quarter – a quarterly record for the operation. The company has said plant performance has remained consistent, and all critical permits, equipment and personnel are now in place to support ongoing production.

Adriatic is undergoing expansion studies to potentially increase production from 800 000 t/y to 1.3-million tonnes a year.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Ausenco (Vareš processing plant and Rupice surface infrastructure sites); Mining Plus (Rupice underground mine planning); Patterson and Cooke (backfill plant testwork and design); Wardell Armstrong International (metallurgical testwork, tailings storage facility and project-wide water balance); Avocageotec (mine geotechnical); Bluequest Resources (concentrate offtake, marketing and logistics); and various local institutes and consultants (power supply, haul-road, railway siding upgrade, firewater reticulation and water supply).

Contact Details for Project Information
Adriatic Metals, tel +44 207 993 0066.