Australia-based nickel sulphide explorer and producer Western Areas announced on March 14 that it has completed the acquisition of 100 percent of Australian miner Kagara Mining's nickel subsidiary Kagara Nickel Pty Ltd in Western Australia, for A$68 million. The effective date of the transfer of all nickel assets to the company, including the high grade Lounge Lizard deposit, is March 1 this year.
The Lounge Lizard deposit contains a high grade indicated mineral resource of 743,000 mt at a grade of 5.8 percent nickel for a total of 43,000 mt of contained nickel. Kagara Nickel's other assets include over 300 km2 of tenement ground in the surrounding Forrestania project region, with many holdings situated immediately adjacent to existing Western Areas' Forrestania tenements.
Western Areas managing director Dan Lougher said, "The combination of the Flying Fox and Lounge Lizard deposits is strategically important to Western Areas, with the mine life now approaching 10 years at the greater Flying Fox mine."
The company's primary discovery at Forrestania, Flying Fox contains approximately 81,820 mt of nickel. Western Areas produced 8,000 mt of nickel in the first full year of production at Flying Fox.