KOLWEZI - Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN; OTCQX: IVPAF) Co-Chairs Robert Friedland and Yufeng 'Miles' Sun are pleased to announce that underground development at the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) produced a combined 250,000 tonnes of ore grading 4.85% copper in November from the Kakula and Kansoko mines.
The tonnage was 29% higher than achieved in October, while the monthly copper grade increased from 4.01% to 4.85%.
The project's pre-production surface stockpiles now contain approximately 1.25 million tonnes of high-grade and medium-grade ore at an estimated grade of 3.75% copper. Contained copper in the stockpiles increased by approximately 12,100 tonnes in November - a 55% increase over October's production - to a cumulative total of more than 46,700 tonnes (the current copper price is approximately US$7,670 a tonne). The project is on track to have approximately three million tonnes of high-grade and medium-grade ore stockpiled on surface, containing more than 125,000 tonnes of copper, prior to the planned start of production in July 2021.
Mr. Friedland and Mr. Sun also noted that underground mine development totalled 2,163 metres in November - only 10 metres shy of establishing another new monthly record. A key milestone was achieved in early November with the joining of Kakula's main northern and southern access tunnels, establishing access to begin mining Kakula's high-grade ore in the centre of the orebody grading approximately +8% copper. The holing event was advanced only from one end for the last few days as a standard safety precaution, which had a minor effect on the metres achieved.
The holing has allowed Kakula's mining crews to enlarge the development drifts in the centre of the deposit to 7-metres wide by 7-metres high (approximately 23-feet wide by 23-feet high) to take advantage of the excellent copper grades across a thick ore zone - providing a substantial increase in tonnes per metre of development.
November's development brings total underground development to more than 26.8 kilometres - approximately 9.0 kilometres ahead of schedule. The monthly total of 2,163 metres of underground development in November was comprised of 1,840 metres at the Kakula Mine and 323 metres at the Kansoko Mine, which is located at the Kamoa Deposit - approximately 10 kilometres north of the Kakula Mine.
Mark Farren, Kamoa Copper's CEO, commented: 'November was a great month for mine development. Not only did we join the Kakula's main access tunnels that now provides a transportation and ventilation connection between the northern and southern declines - a distance of approximately four kilometres, we also achieved record ore production at significantly better copper grades. We expect this production trend to continue as additional mining crews begin working in the centre of the high-grade Kakula orebody. We also saw a sharp increase in copper grades at the Kansoko Mine in November, resulting from ongoing exposure of a rapidly thickening layer of copper-rich siltstone.'
'This month we expect to achieve three key construction milestones - energizing the newly installed 220-kilovolt power line feeding Kamoa-Kakula with hydro-generated electricity from the national grid; synchronization of the first of six turbines at the refurbished Mwadingusha hydropower plant onto the national grid and commissioning the main surface rock-handling, by-pass conveyor system that will enable the delivery of ore from the Kakula Mine directly to the concentrator plant stockpiles,' Mr. Farren added.
Underground mining crews at Kakula are focused on developing the high grade, drift-and-fill mining blocks in the centre of the orebody. Opening up of the mining footprint for these high grade, drift-and-fill mining areas entails, by necessity, development work in areas of low-, medium- and high-grade ore, and is designed to coincide with the start-up of the processing plant next year. This will allow crews to deliver significant tonnage of high-grade ore directly from Kakula's underground workings to the processing plant.
While most of the underground development at the Kansoko Mine is in medium-grade ore, in late November mining crews entered the deposit's initial high-grade ore zone, with 2,100 tonnes of high-grade ore grading 6.66% copper mined by month's end. Kansoko's combined medium-grade and high-grade ore mined in November was approximately 33,000 tonnes at an average grade of 3.87% copper. Ongoing exposure of a rapidly thickening siltstone is the reason for a sharp increase in copper grades at Kansoko in November. Siltstone is a rock type with a strong influence on copper mineralization at Kamoa-Kakula.
Kansoko is being developed by training crews and will be a supplemental source of ore for Phase 2 of the project's development when the Kakula concentrator processing capacity doubles to 7.6 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) currently planned to be commissioned in Q3 2022.
Phase 1 copper production from the Kakula Mine is scheduled to begin in July 2021. Kakula is projected to be the world's highest-grade major copper mine, with an initial mining rate of 3.8 Mtpa at an estimated average feed grade of more than 6.0% copper over the first five years of operation. Phases 1 and 2 combined are forecast to produce approximately 400,000 tonnes of copper per year. Based on independent benchmarking, the project's phased expansion scenario to 19 Mtpa would position Kamoa-Kakula as the world's second largest copper mining complex, with peak annual copper production of more than 800,000 tonnes.
An independent audit of Kamoa-Kakula's greenhouse gas intensity metrics performed by Hatch Ltd., of Mississauga, Canada, confirmed that the project will be among the world's lowest greenhouse gas emitters per unit of copper produced.
About Ivanhoe Mines
Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal joint-venture projects in Southern Africa: the development of major new, mechanized, underground mines at the Kamoa-Kakula copper discoveries in the DRC and at the Platreef palladium-platinum-nickel-copper-rhodium-gold discovery in South Africa and the extensive redevelopment and upgrading of the historic Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC. Kamoa-Kakula is expected to begin producing copper in July 2021 and, through phased expansions, is positioned to become one of the world's largest copper producers. Kamoa-Kakula and Kipushi will be powered by clean, renewable hydro-generated electricity and will be among the world's lowest greenhouse gas emitters per unit of metal produced. Ivanhoe also is exploring for new copper discoveries on its wholly-owned Western Foreland exploration licences in the DRC, near the Kamoa-Kakula Project.
Contact:
Bill Trenaman
Tel: +1.604.331.9834
Forward-looking statements
Certain statements in this release constitute 'forward-looking statements' or 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as 'may', 'would', 'could', 'will', 'intend', 'expect', 'believe', 'plan', 'anticipate', 'estimate', 'scheduled', 'forecast', 'predict' and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results 'may', 'could', 'would', 'might' or 'will' be taken, occur or be achieved. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this release.
Such statements include without limitation, the timing and results of: (i) statements regarding the Kamoa-Kakula Project is on track to have approximately three million tonnes of high-grade and medium-grade ore stockpiled on surface, containing more than 125,000 tonnes of copper, prior to the planned start of production in July 2021; (ii) statements regarding the expectation that the increased production of higher-grade ore to continue as additional mining crews begin working in the centre of the high-grade Kakula orebody; (iii) statements regarding the expectation that the project will achieve three key construction milestones in December - energizing the newly installed 220-kilovolt power line feeding Kamoa-Kakula with hydro-generated electricity from the national grid; synchronization of the first of six turbines at the refurbished Mwadingusha hydropower plant onto the national grid and commissioning the main surface rock-handling, by-pass conveyor system that will enable the delivery of ore from the Kakula Mine directly to the concentrator plant stockpiles; (iv) statements regarding the expectation that Phase 2 of the project's development when the Kakula concentrator processing capacity doubles to 7.6 Mtpa is to be commissioned in Q3 2022; (v) statements regarding Kakula is projected to be the world's highest-grade major copper mine, with an initial mining rate of 3.8 Mtpa at an estimated average feed grade of more than 6.0% copper over the first five years of operation; (vi) statements regarding Phases 1 and 2 combined are forecast to produce approximately 400,000 tonnes of copper per year; statements regarding based on independent benchmarking, the project's phased expansion scenario to 19 Mtpa would position Kamoa-Kakula as the world's second largest copper mining complex, with peak annual copper production of more than 800,000 tonnes; (vii) statements regarding Kamoa-Kakula will be among the world's lowest greenhouse gas emitters per unit of copper produced; (viii) statements regarding approximately one half of the mine's tailings will be sent back underground; (ix) statements regarding Kakula is expected to produce an extremely high grade and clean copper concentrate (containing over 55% copper and extremely low arsenic levels by world standards - approximately 0.01%) that will be highly coveted by copper smelters around the world and (x) statements regarding the fully-refurbished Mwadingusha hydropower plant is expected to deliver approximately 72 megawatts of power to the national grid.
As well, all of the results of the Kakula definitive feasibility study, the Kakula-Kansoko pre-feasibility study and the Kamoa-Kakula preliminary economic assessment, constitute forward-looking statements or information, and include future estimates of internal rates of return, net present value, future production, estimates of cash cost, proposed mining plans and methods, mine life estimates, cash flow forecasts, metal recoveries, estimates of capital and operating costs and the size and timing of phased development of the projects. Furthermore, with respect to this specific forward-looking information concerning the development of the Kamoa-Kakula Project, the company has based its assumptions and analysis on certain factors that are inherently uncertain. Uncertainties include: (i) the adequacy of infrastructure; (ii) geological characteristics; (iii) metallurgical characteristics of the mineralization; (iv) the ability to develop adequate processing capacity; (v) the price of copper; (vi) the availability of equipment and facilities necessary to complete development; (vii) the cost of consumables and mining and processing equipment; (viii) unforeseen technological and engineering problems; (ix) accidents or acts of sabotage or terrorism; (x) currency fluctuations; (xi) changes in regulations; (xii) the compliance by joint venture partners with terms of agreements; (xiii) the availability and productivity of skilled labour; (xiv) the regulation of the mining industry by various governmental agencies; (xv) the ability to raise sufficient capital to develop such projects; (xiv) changes in project scope or design and (xv) political factors.
Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed below and under 'Risk Factors', and elsewhere in this release, as well as unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations.
TURQUOISE HILL RESOURCES LTD. 
