PBX Makes Final Option Payment on Its Copaquire Copper Moly Property, Chile
Thursday, August 7th 2008
International PBX Ventures Ltd. announce that it has made a final payment of $750,000 on its option to purchase a 100% interest in the Copaquire property in northern Chile. The option agreement was signed on January 16, 2004 and the total amount paid was $2,100,000. The vendor retains a 2% NSR subject to a buy out by PBX for US$2,000,000 or alternatively for US$1,000,000 per percentage point.
To date the company has spent a total of $8,000,000,000 on exploration and has drilled a total of 29,600 meters.
On October of 2007 the company released an interim 43-101 compliant molybdenum resource estimate containing an Indicated Mineral Resource of 183.2 million tonnes grading 0.046% Mo and 0.107% Cu, containing 185.4 million pounds of molybdenum and 431.3 million pounds of copper, and an additional Inferred Mineral Resource of 212.8 million tonnes grading 0.041% Mo and 0.097% Cu, containing 191.9 million pounds of molybdenum and 454 million pounds of copper. A cutoff grade of 0.02% Mo was used and metallurgical testing has shown molybdenum recoveries to be in the range of 85-95%.
Molybdenum and copper prices has remained firm in the past year with molybdenum currently at $33/lb and copper at $3.50/lb.
PBX continued drilling the Copaquire until March of 2008 focusing on expanding the molybdenum resource as well as moving a large amount of resource material from the inferred to indicated category.
A resource estimate upgrade is expected to be released in early September 2008. PBX has also engaged the services of AMEC International (Chile) S.A. to deliver a Preliminary Economic Assessment (Scoping Study) to National Instrument 43-101 standards on the Copaquire molybdenum copper porphyry deposit. The PEA will provide important information as to the future development of the molybdenum deposit such as:
– Pit and waste dump design. – Preliminary site layout for facilities and tailings dam. – Production Schedule – Order of Magnitude (OOM) capital and operating cost estimates.
– Financial analysis based on cost estimates and key project indicators.
With a final resource estimate and a PEA on the Molybdenum deposit scheduled for completion in September 2008 the company is now focusing on the development of a copper resource in the Sulfato and Marta copper zones which surround the molybdenum deposit.
PBX will not exercise its option to purchase the concessions Anisillo 1-10, Primavera 1-51, Conquista 1-20 and Aguada 1-2. These concessions were the only ones under option and account for only 5% of the total PBX Tabaco land package of which the company owns 100%. PBX continues exploration on the Tabaco property and is in the process of acquiring additional land in the immediate area.