Private equity firm Denham Capital Management has made an equity investment in Trans-Tasman Resources, which explores and develops iron sands deposits off the North Island of New Zealand.
TTR holds a prospecting permit granting exclusive mineral rights over 6,319 square kilometres of seabed in two offshore areas.
TTR’s initial prospecting work, backed by a mineral resource model derived from a magnetic survey and over 200 surface and core samples, suggests that its tenements could contain a very large and very low cost iron ore resource.
TTR is considering an offshore dredge mining operation combined with an offshore beneficiation plant located on a fixed rig. Iron sands would be dredged from the seabed, processed in the beneficiation plant, then slurried to a capesize vessel for shipment to Asia, or shuttled to a dedicated local onshore steel mill.
“TTR is in an outstanding position to help meet the expected global shortage of iron ore,” says Bert Koth, director and head of metals and mining at Denham Capital. “Its operating and capital costs will be a fraction of those for land-based mining and its transport logistics suffer none of the constraints and costs faced by many, if not most, other iron ore projects. Its management team is extremely well-qualified and has a rare combination of steel and iron ore industry experience. This is an exciting opportunity to make a valuable contribution to the development of New Zealand’s natural resources asset base.”
“The partnership with Denham Capital will enable us to fast track the development of the project without the costs and distractions associated with an early IPO,” adds Paul Berend, managing director of TTR. “The initial investment of capital by Denham Capital will enable us to prove the extraordinary potential of the mineral resource and comply with Joint Ore Reserves Committee reporting standards. This will require additional exploration work, in particular, extensive off shore drilling and beneficiation test work.”
