VANCOUVER, Jan. 27, 2016 /CNW/ - Bear Creek Mining
Corporation (TSX Venture: BCM) ("Bear Creek" or the "Company") is
pleased to provide shareholders with an update on its activities
regarding the Santa Ana and Corani projects in Peru, and an outlook for 2016.
"2015 was a productive year for Bear Creek, with the completion
of the Corani Optimized Final Feasibility Study* and the submission
of our initial statement of claim (the "Memorial") in respect of
the Santa Ana project arbitration," states Andrew Swarthout, President and CEO. "Corani is
one of the largest undeveloped silver projects in the world, and
coupled with our Santa Ana deposit, forms the basis of Bear Creek's
future growth profile. We recognize that during this sustained
downturn in mining markets and metal prices our treasury is a key
asset and a factor that separates us from many other exploration
and development companies. Our goal for 2016 is simple; to
continue to meaningfully move the Corani project forward and work
to unlock the value at Santa Ana while operating in as
cost-effective a manner as possible so that our treasury continues
to buffer us from the worst of the mining downturn. Ultimately,
our aim is to weather this mining market slump and emerge from it
in a 'front-row' position, able to accelerate quickly and
decisively when the markets improve."
Santa Ana
The Santa Ana arbitration, being heard at
the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes
("ICSID"), is proceeding on schedule. Bear Creek's Memorial was
filed on May 29, 2015, which was
followed by the Government of Peru's Counter-Memorial filing on October 6, 2015. Bear Creek submitted its
reply to Peru's Counter-Memorial
in early January, 2016. Peru's
rejoinder to this filing is due to be submitted to ICSID in
mid-April and a final submission from Bear Creek will be filed in
late May, 2016. ICSID is posting these written submissions on their
website, generally within several weeks of their filing, at
https://icsid.worldbank.org/apps/ICSIDWEB/cases/Pages/casedetail.aspx?CaseNo=ARB/14/21&tab=DOC.
In-person hearings before the arbitration tribunal are scheduled to
occur at ICSID headquarters from September 8
to 16, 2016, after which the tribunal will commence its
deliberations. An award on Bear Creek's case is anticipated within
the second half of 2017, though there is no prescribed deadline for
the tribunal's ruling. Bear Creek and its legal counsel remain very
confident in the merits of its claim that the Santa Ana project was
expropriated without compensation in June
2011 through the Government of Peru's issuance of Supreme Decree 032, which
nullified the Company's rights to advance the Santa Ana
project.
Corani
After completing the Corani Optimized Final
Feasibility Study last year, Bear Creek undertook an exploratory
investigation of possible Corani project-financing scenarios.
Feedback from a range of potential participants, including lenders,
off-take partners, development banks, equity markets, and streaming
partners, aligned closely with the Company's internal conclusions;
Corani, as one of the largest, and longest-life-span,
undeveloped silver deposits in the world, is a financeable and
buildable operation but will require significant upfront capital
access and improved metal and share prices to justify a development
decision. Therefore, our plans for Corani during the coming
months are to continue to de-risk the project by acquiring key
permits in preparation for an application for the Construction
Permit that is ultimately required to commence development, while
maintaining the excellent community relationships we have worked
hard to foster. The Company's goal is to ensure the necessary
components are in place to make sound and nimble decisions for
Corani when the opportunity arises. To this end, in late 2015 Bear
Creek submitted modifications (based on the Corani Optimized Final
Feasibility Study) to its Environmental and Social Impact
Assessment ("ESIA") originally approved in September 2013. In mid-January Bear Creek received approval of the
modified ESIA from the Peruvian Ministry of Energy and Mines; a
key milestone for the Corani project and an important component of
the eventual Construction Permit.
Exploration Projects
Bear Creek has 3 prospective
exploration properties in Peru
under joint venture; the Sumi and La Yegua copper-gold projects and
the Maria José gold-silver project. While we continue to maintain
an ownership interest in these projects, they are currently being
advanced at virtually no cost to the Company.
Cost-Cutting
Bear Creek's strategy for the coming
months will continue to comprise both offensive and defensive
elements. We will continue the Santa Ana arbitration process so
that its value to shareholders can be unlocked. We will continue to
meet our Corani social and environmental obligations and maintain
our cooperative and respectful community partnerships while we work
to secure the additional permits required for its eventual
development. Our focus on longevity will be amplified in the
coming months however, in order to preserve our treasury as long as
possible without reversing our forward momentum. General and
administrative expenses are being lowered as much as possible,
staffing levels are being reduced to core functions only, and the
Company is preparing to replace a significant percentage of the
cash component of director and management compensation with
non-cash alternatives.
*see Bear Creek news releases dated June
2, 2015 and July 20, 2015,
available on its website (www.bearcreekmining.com) for details of
the 2015 Corani Optimized Final Feasibility Study.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Andrew Swarthout
President and CEO
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101")
Disclosure
All of Bear Creek's exploration programs and
pertinent disclosure of a technical or scientific nature are
prepared by or prepared under the direct supervision of
Andrew Swarthout, P.Geo., President
and CEO, a Qualified Person ("QP") as defined in NI 43-101.
The 2015 Corani Optimized Final Feasibility Study Technical
Report, filed on July 20, 2015, was
prepared by a team of independent engineering consultants as
described in the Company's news release of June 2, 2015.
Caution Regarding Forward Looking Statements
This news
release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning
of Canadian securities legislation and "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of the United States Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This information and these
statements, referred to herein as "forward-looking statements" are
made as of the date of this news release or as of the effective
date of information described in this news release, as applicable.
Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future
performance and reflect current estimates, predictions,
expectations or beliefs regarding future events. Any statements
that relate to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans,
projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or
performance are not statements of historical fact and may be
forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements made
herein and in the documents referred to herein, are based on the
Company's or its consultants' beliefs at the time the statements
were made, as well as various assumptions made by and information
currently available to them. Although management considers these
assumptions to be reasonable based on information available to it,
they may prove to be incorrect.
By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve
inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and
risks exist that estimates, forecasts, projections and other
forward-looking statements will not be achieved or that assumptions
do not reflect future experience. We caution readers not to place
undue reliance on these forward-looking statements as a number of
important factors could cause the actual outcomes to differ
materially from the beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations,
anticipations, estimates, assumptions and intentions expressed in
such forward-looking statements. These risk factors may be
generally stated as the risk that the assumptions and estimates
used to make such forward-looking statements do not occur and the
additional risks described in the Company's Annual Information Form
for the year ended December 31, 2013,
annual financial statements and management's discussion and
analysis for the year ended December 31,
2014 and in the feasibility study entitled "Optimized and
Final Feasibility Study, Corani Project, Puno, Peru, Form 43-101F1 Technical Report" filed on
July 20, 2015. When relying on our
forward-looking statements, investors and others should carefully
consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and
potential events. The Company does not undertake to update any
forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be
made from time to time by the Company or on behalf of the Company,
except as required by law.
SOURCE Bear Creek Mining Corporation