SMM Lead Market Daily Review (2015-3-17)

Sibanye-Stillwater has approved investment to proceed with the Mt Lyell copper-gold project in Tasmania, Australia, moving the historic operation toward a restart after more than a decade on care and maintenance. The company said the project has received a positive investment decision from its board, with steady-state production expected at approximately 26,000 tonnes of copper per year, alongside around 16,000 oz of gold and 116,000 oz of silver annually. First production is targeted for early 2029. The project is expected to require approximately A$490 million of capital investment and support an initial 23-year mine life. Sibanye-Stillwater plans around US$4.1 million of expenditure in H2 2026 as Mt Lyell moves into the execution phase, while broader project execution is expected to begin in H1 2027. The Tasmanian government has also confirmed the restart decision and said the project could create up to 300 jobs. Mt Lyell has been on care and maintenance since 2014, making the latest board approval a significant step toward bringing the mine back into production. The project forms part of Sibanye-Stillwater’s broader organic growth programme, alongside other approved investments across its portfolio. The positive investment decision establishes a clearer pathway for Mt Lyell to return to production and add around 26,000 tonnes per year of copper to future Australian supply at steady state. However, first production remains targeted for early 2029, meaning the project still needs to progress through execution and construction before contributing new copper units to the market.

The following table shows the ferrous and nonferrous metals movement on the SHFE and DCE on 02 Sep , 2026

Aya Gold & Silver has entered into an agreement to acquire a 139 km² portfolio of copper-silver exploration permits in Morocco, including a 19 km² mining licence, approximately 35 km west of its Zgounder Silver Mine. The company said the acquisition would expand its land position in the Zgounder district and provide exposure to a large, underexplored copper-silver system with multiple styles of mineralisation. The portfolio includes historical trenching that returned 15 metres grading 0.65% copper and 33 g/t silver, while historical surface grab samples returned up to 4.6% copper and 837 g/t silver. Aya’s own surface sampling returned up to 4.0% copper and 500 g/t silver, while the company said a principal copper-silver horizon has been confirmed over more than 2 km. Aya cautioned that the historical results have not been sufficiently verified as current and that surface grab samples are selective and not representative of true widths or overall mineralisation grades. Aya will acquire all issued and outstanding shares of the seller through its wholly owned subsidiary for total consideration of C$4 million, payable in Aya common shares. Completion remains subject to customary conditions, including confirmatory due diligence and Moroccan, Canadian and Toronto Stock Exchange approvals. Over the following 12–18 months, Aya plans to undertake stream-sediment geochemistry, hyperspectral studies, airborne geophysics, mapping and prospecting to assess the portfolio’s exploration potential. The transaction would give Aya a larger exploration footprint around its existing Moroccan operations and could establish a new copper-silver exploration platform near Zgounder. However, the portfolio remains early-stage, and the historical copper and silver results require further verification before their significance can be assessed. The near-term significance therefore lies primarily in portfolio expansion and exploration potential rather than additional copper supply.