Canadian Zinc has engaged AMC Mining Consultants (Canada) and Ausenco Engineering Canada to complete a definitive feasibility study (DFS) to support the project debt financing of the Prairie Creek Zn-Pb-Ag mine in the Northwest Territories, Canada
Discussions to date with financial institutions have confirmed that the opportunity of raising project debt financing for the Prairie Creek Mine would be enhanced by completing a definitive or bankable feasibility study which would address all the contingences in the required detail and help to manage or reduce the various risk factors.
In addition, the Prairie Creek Prefeasibility Study (“PFS”), completed in 2016 by AMC and Tetra Tech Inc., recommended certain aspects for further detailed study and identified a number of opportunities for optimizing and potentially enhancing the project economics, including a front-end engineering and design phase that would complete engineering to the stage where the design can be used to obtain fixed pricing from construction contractors.
The Company expects that the Definitive Feasibility Study will be completed by mid-2017.
Project Development Planning
Canadian Zinc has also engaged Ausenco to undertake project development planning services for the Prairie Creek Mine and deliver a robust optimized project development plan that can be used to advance the project to production and, at the same time, provide a critical link to the project financing plan by providing potential providers of debt or equity with a clear path to profitable production.
Ausenco will complete required engineering utilizing a cost-effective project design methodology to support the development of a high level execution plan which will be focused on making the best possible use of existing infrastructure and construction materials on site so as to provide a lower cost or faster time-frame to production for the project.
Ausenco has been selected as this company, with complete engineering services based in the Vancouver area, has the relevant experience and expertise, including northern design and project execution at brownfield sites, to prepare a Project Execution Plan that will define the approach to constructing the Prairie Creek project. This will include the development of a contracting and procurement strategy for further stages of work, which will align with the project execution schedule and will serve to support the capital cost estimate and make provision for the identified execution risks and opportunities. The plan will be developed with the objective of converting it to an Engineering Procurement and Construction Management (“EPCM”) contract at the appropriate time.