Nautilus provides project update
October 12 2017 - 7:15AM
Nautilus Minerals Inc. (TSX:NUS) (OTC:NUSMF) (the
"
Company" or "
Nautilus") is happy
to provide an update on the status of its seafloor production
system, to be used by Nautilus and its partner, Eda Kopa (Solwara)
Limited at the Solwara 1 Project site, in the Bismarck Sea of Papua
New Guinea (PNG).
Mike Johnston, Nautilus’ CEO commented: “The
Company is pleased by the progress that continues to be made with
the construction, trialing and delivery of the seafloor production
system as detailed in the notes below. The system remains on track
for initial production during the first half of 2019, subject to
further financing as indicated previously.”
Status
Submerged trials of the first of the Seafloor
Production Tools (SPTs), the Collecting Machine (CM) have now been
completed at the trial facility in Motukea Island, Port Moresby,
PNG. The results of the CM trials indicate that the machine can
perform to design specifications, and the team is now looking at
operating enhancements. The Auxiliary Cutter is currently being
trialed and this will be followed by the Bulk Cutter. We look
forward to reporting on these trials later this year.
At the Mawei shipyard, the vessel construction
is currently at ~70%. The assembly of all three SPT Launch and
Recovery Systems (LARS) is progressing well at the shipyard under
the supervision of the supplier AXTech. The 200T and 100T ship’s
cranes have been delivered to the shipyard by Macgregor and one of
the crane pedestals has already been fitted on to the deck. The
lift winches and spoolers for the SPT LARS have also been shipped
from Korea to the shipyard.
The Sichuan Honghua Petroleum Equipment Co.
(Honghua) continues to make good progress with the fabrication of
the derrick and associated substructure. This equipment, which is
required for the deployment of the Subsea Slurry Lift Pump and
riser, has now undergone trial assembly at Honghua’s fabrication
facility in Chengdu. The derrick and substructure will be shipped
to the Mawei shipyard later this month so that installation on the
Production Support Vessel can start before the end of the year.
Honghua have also commenced fabrication of the dewatering plant
structural steel modules at their Qidong yard, following
procurement of the required steel over the past two months.
Stakeholder engagement continues to progress
well in PNG with a series of visits arranged for Provincial
Government representatives and community leaders to witness the SPT
trials taking place at Motukea Island. The Company continues to
receive strong local support for the project as a result of its
health, education and infrastructure improvement programs and
regular awareness meetings in coastal communities.
Subject to further financing, Nautilus’
objective remains to develop the world's first commercial high
grade seafloor copper-gold mine and launch the seafloor resource
production industry during the first half of 2019.
To view some video footage of the vessel and
some recent pictures of the build please go to the links section
below.
Links
Vessel build:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQFbHQfz6Pw&feature=youtu.be
CM commencing trials:
http://www.nautilusminerals.com//irm/showmedia.aspx?MediaId=64
LARS equipment:
http://www.nautilusminerals.com//irm/showmedia.aspx?MediaId=66
Visits to PNG:
http://www.nautilusminerals.com//irm/showmedia.aspx?MediaId=65
For more information please refer to
www.nautilusminerals.com or contact:
Investor Relations
Nautilus Minerals Inc. (Toronto) Email:
investor@nautilusminerals.com Tel: +1 416 551 1100 |
|
The TSX does not accept responsibility
for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
Certain of the statements made in this news
release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning
of applicable securities laws, including statements with respect to
the plans to develop the seafloor copper-gold mine at the Solwara 1
project site during the first half of 2019. We have made numerous
assumptions about such statements, including
assumptions relating to project funding requirements
and commitments and the operation of the Company's
seafloor production system. Even though
our management believes the
assumptions made and the expectations represented
by such statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that
they will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking
information by its nature involves
known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors which may cause
the actual results to be materially different from any future
results expressed or implied by such forward-looking
information. Please refer to our
most recently filed Annual
Information Form in respect of
material assumptions and risks related to the prospects of
extracting minerals from the seafloor and other risks
relating to the Company's business
and plans for development of
the Solwara 1 Project. Risks related to
continuing the Company's operations and advancing the development
of the Solwara 1 Project include the risk that the Company will be
unable to obtain at all or on acceptable terms, and within the
timeframes required, the remaining financings necessary to continue
operations and fund the completion of the build, testing and
deployment of the Company's seafloor production system. As
the Company has not completed
an economic study in respect of
the Solwara 1 Project, there
can be no assurance that the Company's production
plans will, if fully funded and implemented, successfully
demonstrate that seafloor resource production is commercially
viable. Except as required by law, we do not expect to update
forward-looking statements and information
as conditions change and you
are referred to the full
discussion of the Company's business
contained in the Company's reports
filed with the securities regulatory
authorities in Canada.
About Nautilus Minerals
Inc.
Nautilus is the first company to explore the
ocean floor for polymetallic seafloor massive sulphide deposits.
Nautilus was granted the first mining lease for such deposits at
the prospect known as Solwara 1, in the territorial waters of Papua
New Guinea, where it is aiming to produce copper, gold and silver.
The Company has also been granted its environmental permit for this
site.
Nautilus also holds highly prospective
exploration acreage in the western Pacific (granted and under
application), as well as in international waters in the Central
Pacific.
A Canadian registered company, Nautilus is
listed on the TSX:NUS stock exchange and is also a member of the
Nasdaq International Designation program. Its corporate office is
in Brisbane, Australia. Its major shareholders include MB Holding
Company LLC, an Oman based group with interests in mining, oil
& gas, which holds a 29.3% interest and Metalloinvest, the
largest iron ore producer in Europe and the CIS, which has a 18.5%
holding (each on a non-diluted basis, excluding loan shares
outstanding under the Company’s share loan plan).