Key points
- Nautilus held $231.2 million (equivalent) in cash and cash equivalents on deposit with major banks as at Dec. 31, 2008.
- The company completed metallurgical testwork confirming a marketable copper concentrate can be produced from Solwara 1 ore using standard froth floatation techniques.
- Nautilus submitted a mining lease application and an environmental impact statement to the government of Papua New Guinea for Solwara 1.
- Teck Cominco Ltd. discovered four new high-grade seafloor massive sulphide systems on Nautilus’s prospecting licences in Tonga and one in PNG.
Nautilus Minerals Inc. has released its audited consolidated financial results for the year ended Dec. 31, 2008, reported under Canadian generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), together with management’s discussion and analysis and annual information form.
2008 highlights:
$231.2-million (equivalent) in cash and cash equivalents held on deposit with major banks as at Dec. 31, 2008;Completed metallurgical testwork on its Solwara 1 deposit confirming a marketable copper concentrate can be produced from Solwara 1 ore using standard froth floatation techniques;Seed capital investment in United Nickel Inc.;Appointed new chief executive officer and president;Discovered two new Solwara prospects in Papua New Guinea (PNG);Teck Cominco Ltd. discovered four new high-grade seafloor massive sulphide (SMS) systems on Nautilus’s prospecting licences in Tonga and one in PNG;Submission of mining lease (ML) application to government of PNG;Anglo American PLC increased its stake in the company;Submission of environmental impact statement (EIS) to government of PNG;Deferral of Solwara 1 mining system equipment build to take advantage of opportunities presented by the economic downturn.
- $231.2-million (equivalent) in cash and cash equivalents held on deposit with major banks as at Dec. 31, 2008;
- Completed metallurgical testwork on its Solwara 1 deposit confirming a marketable copper concentrate can be produced from Solwara 1 ore using standard froth floatation techniques;
- Seed capital investment in United Nickel Inc.;
- Appointed new chief executive officer and president;
- Discovered two new Solwara prospects in Papua New Guinea (PNG);
- Teck Cominco Ltd. discovered four new high-grade seafloor massive sulphide (SMS) systems on Nautilus’s prospecting licences in Tonga and one in PNG;
- Submission of mining lease (ML) application to government of PNG;
- Anglo American PLC increased its stake in the company;
- Submission of environmental impact statement (EIS) to government of PNG;
- Deferral of Solwara 1 mining system equipment build to take advantage of opportunities presented by the economic downturn.
Stephen Rogers, Nautilus’s CEO, commented: “A number of significant steps forward in the development of the seafloor resource production industry have been taken by Nautilus in 2008. Permitting for the world’s first SMS project has advanced with the submission of the EIS and an application for a ML. Seven new SMS deposits have been discovered in PNG and Tonga which continues the build of our project pipeline for the long term. Considerable progress was made in project definition and the selection and design of equipment. Engineering of the seafloor production equipment continues and the company is actively pursuing the selection of a suitable vessel to support production at Solwara 1. The change in market conditions at the end of 2008 presents a significant opportunity for the company to capitalize on improvements in operating and capital costs.”
Nautilus has filed its annual information form for the year ending Dec. 31, 2008. The company’s financial statements, management’s discussion and analysis, annual information form, and technical report are available from the company’s website and SEDAR.
