Orion Minerals (ORN), listed on the ASX and JSE, outlined its path to becoming a copper producer during a presentation at the Resources Rising Stars Gold Coast Conference on Thursday.
The company has secured a $250 million U.S. prepayment and offtake agreement with Glencore, structured across three tranches over a 10-year term with an option to extend. The funding supports development of the Prieska Copper Zinc Mine in South Africa’s Northern Cape province.
Prieska, ranked among the world’s top 30 volcanogenic massive sulfide base metal deposits, operated between the early 1970s and the 1990s, processing 46 million tonnes of ore and producing 430,000 tonnes of copper. Remaining mineral resources total 31 million tonnes containing 370,000 tonnes of copper.
Under the development plan, first production is expected approximately 12 to 13 months after financing is completed. The upper section will be mined over the first four years, yielding about 70,000 tonnes of bulk concentrate. A deeper phase, beginning in year three and running through year 13, is expected to produce around 1 million tonnes of copper concentrate and 1.25 million tonnes of zinc concentrate.
At steady state, the mine will process 2.4 million tonnes of ore annually, producing 22,000 tonnes of copper and 65,000 tonnes of zinc in concentrate. The mineralized system extends 2.6 kilometers and remains open at both ends and at depth, with five underground extension targets identified.
"Because of its by-product credit, Prieska sits comfortably in the lowest quartile of copper producers," the company’s CEO said.
Orion also owns the Okiep Copper Project in the same district, where copper was first discovered in the mid-1650s and historical production spanned roughly 150 years, yielding approximately 2 million tonnes of copper metal. Historical drill intercepts included 50 meters grading 5% copper and 60 meters grading 3% copper. Twelve additional brownfield deposits have been identified within the tenement package.
The company controls approximately 3,500 square kilometers of tenements across the Prieska and Okiep regions, including the Jacomynspan Project and Areachap Belt.
Orion was also selected as one of 11 cohorts out of roughly 780 applicants for the BHP Xplor Program, the sole mining company chosen from the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region.
As of the conference, Orion reported a market capitalization of $368 million, a share price of AUD 0.024, a current ratio of 1.52, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.
