Exploration and mineral development firm Aurelia Metals said it is no longer in negotiations over the possible acquisition of the CSA mine in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.
The CSA Mine is an underground copper mine situated in Cobar, Central Western NSW. The mine, which employs more than 300 people, is operated by Glencore-owned Cobar Management.
Go deeper with GlobalData
The CSA mine initially started in 1871 with an erratic production history until 1964, when Broken Hill South commenced large scale production.
The mine passed to CRA in 1980 and then to Golden Shamrock Mines in 1992. It was closed in 1997/8 after the acquisition by Ashanti Goldfields and was reopened in 1999 by Glencore.
The facility’s underground mine produces more than 1.1 million tonnes of copper ore. It also produces in excess of 185,000 tonnes of copper concentrate per year.
The concentrate features nearly 27% copper metal and is exported to smelters in India, China and South East Asia.
Aurelia Metals had offered Glencore $575m in March for the acquisition, but the parties failed to sign an agreement.
The offer included a mix of cash of around $525m and Aeris shares that are worth around $50m, apart from a royalty payable to Glencore.
Commenting on its latest decision, Aurelia said: “The company’s current priorities are working through the leadership transition announced on 2 May 2019 and seeking to maximise shareholder value through the opportunities within our existing portfolio.”
The company’s gold production guidance for the 2019 fiscal year is unchanged at 115,000 to 130,000 ounces.
Aurelia’s focus is the development and ongoing exploration of the Hera-Nymagee project, which includes the high grade gold and base metal Hera deposit and the high-grade copper discovery at the nearby Nymagee copper deposit.
