Euro Sun Mining Inc. announced the completion of the ratification process of its exploitation permit and mining license for the Rovina Valley Project in Romania. Euro Sun’s mining license was signed by the Prime Minister of Romania at the weekly meeting of the Romanian government on November 9, 2018, as press released through the Government of Romania website.
The fully approved mining license for the Rovina Valley Project will now be published in the Official Monitor of the Romanian Government.
Stan Bharti, Chairman of Euro Sun stated; “The importance of this ratification cannot be overstated. Romania has now demonstrated an open and willing embrace for mining investment, one that is sure to attract significant interest not only in the Rovina Valley project but for mining investment globally in Romania. I would like to thank all the Government of Romania officials involved for approving this important milestone.”
Euro Sun Mining (TSX: ESM) has become the first non-state-owned entity to receive a ratified mining license for its Rovina Valley copper-gold project in Romania, signaling that the East European nation is open for business, the company says.
The mining company will now embark on an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA), and continue its work on a feasibility study on the project, which Euro Sun describes as one of the largest mineral deposits in the European Union. Euro Sun’s shares were up 50% to $1.05 in mid-morning trading
Rovina consists of three porphyry deposits, two at surface (Colnic and Rovina), and one underground (Ciresta). Romania borders the Black Sea to the southeast, Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest and Moldova to the east.
Measured and indicated resources stand at 406 million tonnes grading 0.55 gram gold per tonne and 0.16% copper for 7.2 million ounces of contained gold and 1.4 billion pounds of copper. The resource estimate was completed in July 2012. A 2010 preliminary economic assessment estimated average gold production of 196,000 ounces of gold and 49.4 million pounds of copper each year over a 19-year mine.
The company says a feasibility study will evaluate a scaleable, phased approach targeting higher grade zones of the deposits.
“The importance of the ratification cannot be underestimated,” Mike Kozak of Cantor Fitzgerald commented in a research note. “This is the single largest de-risking even in the company’s history.” “Rovina Valley, when up and running, will be Europe’s largest gold and copper mine in terms of resources,” he noted. Kozak also pointed out that Rovina is not at all like Gabriel Resources’ (TSX: GBU) troubled Rosia Montana project, which has been stalled for years due to local opposition. To associate the two projects is “unequivocally incorrect,” Kozak wrote. “Absolutely none of the many issues that have plagued the latter, apply to the former.” “Permit now in hand, Rovina Valley is a project that can be built.”
Euro Sun’s shares were up 50% to $1.05 in mid-morning trading. Kozak has a one-year target price of $2.10. The mining analyst estimated that the ESIA will take about 18 months.
Kozak estimates the mine could produce about 150,000 ounces of gold and 50 million pounds of copper a year over a multi-decade mine life. He also argues that the project could attract a joint-venture partner and/or M&A interest.
“Rovina Valley has the size, scale, and grades that are attractive to large-tier and mid-tier gold and copper miners,” he stated. “It has the potential to be advanced in a joint-venture structure (similar to last year’s Caspiche-Cerro Casale deal) or, should the valuation disparity persist, Euro Sun could represent an excellent takeover candidate.”
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