REG - Beowulf Mining PLC - Gállok/ Kallak Iron Ore Project Update

Beowulf MiningAnnouncement

03/06/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 7529Q  Beowulf Mining PLC  03 June 2024

 

 

 

3 June 2024

 

Beowulf Mining Plc

 

("Beowulf" or the "Company")

 

 

Gállok/ Kallak Iron Ore Project Update

 

Beowulf (AIM: BEM; Spotlight: BEO) and its wholly owned Swedish subsidiary
Jokkmokk Iron Mines AB ("Jokkmokk Iron") are pleased to provide an update on
the Gállok or Kallak Iron Ore project ("Gállok" or "the project").

 

 

Highlights

 

Stakeholder interaction

·    Positive engagement with delegation from UNESCO ("United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization") to discuss the development
of Gállok in the context of the Laponia World Heritage Site

·    Initiation of meetings with local stakeholders including landowners
and Sami villages focused on developing collaborative approach to future
activity

 

Environmental workstreams

·    Hydrogeology test-work initiated with ramp-up in activity in coming
weeks

·    Continuation of baseline studies including bird surveys, water
sampling and noise monitoring

 

Technical activity

·    Metallurgical test-work nearing completion

·    Open pit geotechnical field work completed with laboratory analysis
underway

·    In-fill drilling planned for summer period primarily to upgrade
Inferred resource to Measured and Indicated category

·    Trade-off study on location of tailings management facility ("TMF")
completed with initial TMF design work underway

·    Logistics and transport study initiated with initial trade-off
nearing completion

 

Permitting

·    Preparations are underway for the Environmental Impact Assessment
("EIA") and environmental permit application

·    While no specific timelines have been given, the decision from the
Supreme Administrative Court is anticipated within the coming weeks

 

 

Ed Bowie, Chief Executive Officer of Beowulf, commented:

 

"Last week, I had the privilege of meeting the UNESCO delegation on three
separate occasions, at our office in Jokkmokk, in the stunning Laponia World
Heritage Site and finally in Stockholm. We enjoyed a robust discussion and
appreciate the advice imparted by the delegation on their expectations with
respect to delivering a meaningful World Heritage Impact Assessment. We look
forward to incorporating this advice as we work with the Cultural Heritage
Board and other key stakeholders.

 

"Dmytro has had a busy first month with activity at Gállok ramping up
significantly across many disciplines. Of critical importance to the future
development of the project is building a transparent and trusting relationship
with local stakeholders. Dmytro, with the support of our lead consultant for
Reindeer Analysis and consultation with local stakeholders, has held a number
of positive meetings with landowners and the Jåhkågaska tjiellde Sami
village. Further meetings, including with the other Sami villages, are
planned.

 

"With a series of work-streams nearing completion, we look forward to updating
the market over the coming months."

 

Dmytro Siergieiev, Project Director of Jokkmokk Iron, commented:

 

"It has been a pleasure to meet a number of key local stakeholders over the
course of the month. We have a range of activities, ongoing and being planned
for the summer months, and I have appreciated the opportunity to explain our
plans to the affected landowners and the Jåhkågaska tjiellde Sami village.

 

"It is an exciting time for the project but critical that we engage with our
stakeholders and build local support for Gállok."

 

 

Stakeholder interaction

 

A delegation representing UNESCO World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS (International
Council on Monuments and Sites) and IUCN (International Union for Conservation
of Nature) undertook a "Reactive Monitoring Mission" to Laponia World Heritage
Site between May 27(th) and 31(st), 2024. Their objective, as set out in
Decision 45 COM 7B.32 https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/8306
(https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/8306) , was "to ascertain the present
condition of the property, the nature and extent of the threats to the
property, to provide guidance on the IDIA (In-Depth Impact Assessment)
revision process including the efficacy of the criteria defined for the
evaluation of potential impacts of the proposed mining and ancillary
activities, and to propose measures to facilitate the conservation of
attributes which support the OUV (Outstanding Universal Values) of the
property." The delegation was hosted for the week by two representatives of
Riksantikvarieämbetet ("RAA" or the "Cultural Heritage Board") and a
representative of the Naturvårdsverket (the Swedish Environmental Protection
Agency or "EPA").

 

At the request of the Company, we held a series of meetings with the
delegation. On 27 May 2024, the delegation visited the Jokkmokk Iron office in
the town of Jokkmokk where the team presented the project, its development
status, importance in the context of decarbonising the steel industry and our
planned activities including Reindeer Analysis and World Heritage Impact
Assessment.

 

On Tuesday 28 May 2024, Ed Bowie accompanied Anders Forsgren, the Company's
lead consultant responsible for consultation with the Sami, and undertaking
the Reindeer Analysis and World Heritage Impact Assessment. Anders has spent
many years working with environmental permitting processes and reindeer
herding analysis and was previously Chair of Svemin's (the Swedish Association
of Mines, Mineral and Metal Producers) working group for Reindeer Herding and
Biodiversity and a member of the ICMM (International Council on Mining and
Metals) working group for Indigenous People and Biodiversity.

 

Finally, the Company was supported by Svemin at a meeting in Stockholm on 31
May 2024. Svemin provided the delegation with a thorough overview of the
Swedish mining sector and their role in supporting the industry and in
particular in the development of industry-wide policies and guidelines
including in relation to reindeer herding.

 

The Company looks forward to working with the RAA and other stakeholders
including the Site Management of Laponia, the EPA and Svemin in developing the
World Heritage Impact Assessment. There will be significant overlap with the
Company's ongoing environmental and social impact assessment activity
including reindeer herding analysis.

 

In addition to the UNESCO related engagement, Dmytro and Anders had a kick-off
meeting with representatives of Jåhkågaska tjiellde, the Sami village in
which the Gállok project is situated, to discuss working collaboratively in
completing the reindeer analysis. Follow-up meetings are planned as well as
meetings with the Sirges and Tuorpon Sami villages.

 

In a further positive development since joining the Company at the beginning
of May, Dmytro has held meetings with a number of the landowners in the
Gállok area to discuss the proposed activities over the coming months. While
not all landowners are supportive of the development of Gállok, most
appreciated the direct contact from the Company and the opportunity to discuss
the plans first-hand.

 

 

Environmental workstreams

 

Hydrogeology test-work on boreholes drilled during 2023 was initiated during
the month with further test-work planned during June. Data generated from this
test-work, which includes pump testing, will be used to model the likely
impacts of developing the open pit and allow water balance and related impacts
to be assessed.

 

 

Technical activity

 

Metallurgical test-work, based on samples selected in late 2023 from historic
drill core and trial mining material, is nearing completion. Comminution,
magnetic separation and flotation test-work has been completed with the
preliminary results being in line with expectations. Final results are
expected over the coming weeks.

 

Geotechnical logging of drill core has been completed by SLR Consulting, lead
consultants for the Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS"), supported by the Company's
geologists. Samples have also been selected for a range of geotechnical tests.
The objective of this test work is to determine the likely rock conditions
within the planned open pit and enable pit slopes and ultimately mine plans to
be developed.

 

The Company has submitted a work plan, which has been approved by
Länsstyrelsen i Norrbotten (the "Norrbotten County Administrative Board" or
"CAB"), to undertake some limited in-fill drilling. This drilling is planned
for the coming months and has the objective of converting Inferred resources
into Measured and Indicated categories. Inferred resources accounted for 14%
of the total mined material in the January 2023 Scoping Study mine plan.
However, at PFS stage only Measured and Indicated Resources can be converted
into reserves and included in the mine plan. Inferred resources would
therefore be treated as waste.

 

The Company has completed a review of a range of possible locations for the
TMF including desk-top and field assessments of potential impacts on the
natural attributes, communities and reindeer herding as well as technical and
economic analyses. This multi-faceted review has confirmed that the preferred
site is the same general location as the Scoping Study TMF, and initial design
work following international best practice and the Global Industry Standard
for Tailings Management (GISTM) is underway with geotechnical investigation
planned for later in the summer.

 

The Company has also been reviewing and updating the logistics and
transportation work previously completed as part of the Scoping Study. The
initial trade-off study is nearing completion. Plans to upgrade and expand
port and rail facilities in the north of Sweden are currently under review,
driven partly by Sweden joining NATO. The Company therefore plans to maintain
a flexible approach to its ultimate infrastructure solutions.

 

Permitting

 

The appeal against the Government's initial awarding of the Exploitation
Concession for Gállok remains ongoing. The Supreme Administrative Court has
not provided any timeframe in which it will deliver its verdict in the case
although the Company's expectation, based on third-party advice, is that this
will be before the end of June.

 

Preparations for the EIA and environmental permit application are well under
way. The formal consultation process with stakeholders is a vital part of the
EIA process, as it helps to identify and mitigate any potential environmental
and social concerns associated with the project. The Company is ramping up
these efforts and working closely with Bergab, who is responsible for drafting
the EIA, to reflect a proactive approach to environmental stewardship and
community engagement.

 

 

Enquiries:

 

 Beowulf Mining plc
 Ed Bowie, Chief Executive Officer          ed.bowie@beowulfmining.com

 SP Angel
 (Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker)
 Ewan Leggat / Stuart Gledhill / Adam Cowl  Tel: +44 (0) 20 3470 0470

 Alternative Resource Capital
 (Joint Broker)
 Alex Wood                                  Tel: +44 (0) 20 7186 9004

 BlytheRay
 Tim Blythe / Megan Ray                     Tel: +44 (0) 20 7138 3204

 

 

About Beowulf Mining plc

 

Beowulf Mining is a mining company with main activities in exploration and
development in Sweden, Finland, and Kosovo. Beowulf's portfolio is diversified
by commodity, geography, and stage of development of the projects, and
consists primarily of iron ore, graphite, gold, and base metals. Beowulf
Mining is headquartered in London, England.

 

 

Cautionary Statement

 

Statements and assumptions made in this document with respect to the Company's
current plans, estimates, strategies and beliefs, and other statements that
are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements about the future
performance of Beowulf. Forward-looking statements include, but are not
limited to, those using words such as "may", "might", "seeks", "expects",
"anticipates", "estimates", "believes", "projects", "plans", strategy",
"forecast" and similar expressions. These statements reflect management's
expectations and assumptions in light of currently available information. They
are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited
to , (i) changes in the economic, regulatory and political environments in the
countries where Beowulf operates; (ii) changes relating to the geological
information available in respect of the various projects undertaken; (iii)
Beowulf's continued ability to secure enough financing to carry on its
operations as a going concern; (iv) the success of its potential joint
ventures and alliances, if any; (v) metal prices, particularly as regards iron
ore. In the light of the many risks and uncertainties surrounding any mineral
project at an early stage of its development, the actual results could differ
materially from those presented and forecast in this document. Beowulf assumes
no unconditional obligation to immediately update any such statements and/or
forecast.

 

 

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