OREANDA-NEWS. January 30, 2013. OJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel (hereinafter, MMC Norilsk Nickel or the Company) announces that the design documentation related to the construction of Bystrinsky Mining and Processing Combine (Bystrinsky GOK) has successfully passed state expert appraisal, reported the press-centre of Norilsk Nickel.

Gipronickel Institute LLC, MMC Norilsk Nickel’s subsidiary, was involved as a general designer when drafting the documentation.

The Company is planning to construct Bystrinsky GOK as part of Chita Project.

This investment project involving the exploration of mineral resources in the Zabaikalsky Territory is being implemented as part of private-public partnership. MMC Norilsk Nickel and Investment Fund of the Russian Federation co-financing the construction of railways to the deposits are partners of the project.

At the moment, the Company builds the infrastructure and access roads to the deposits and carries out design works at Bugdainsky GOK. The total investments to implement Chita Project amount to RUB 104.6 bln. MMC Norilsk Nickel’s portion will exceed RUB 80 bln., where RUB 72.4 bln. will be allocated to Bystrinsky and Bugdainsky deposits to be applied at the management’s discretion.

It is scheduled to begin the GOK’s construction in 2013 and to terminate work in 2016. It is also planned to ramp up the amount of production to reach the design capacity by 2017.

Pursuant to the design documentation, annual level of production shall amount to:

-  10 mln. tons of ore;

-  65.8 thousand tons of copper in concentrate;

-  2.1 mln. tons of iron in concentrate;

-  6.9 tons of gold in concentrate;

-  35.9 tons of silver in concentrate.

Two start-up facilities with the capacity of 5 mln. tons of ore each will be involved to put the production facilities into operation.

Drilling and blasting operations will be used to mine four open-pits, two of which (Verkhne-Ildikansky and Bystrinsky-2) are to be mined during the whole period of the GOK’s operation, while the other two (Maly Medny Chaynik and Yuzhno-Rodstvenny) are to be commissioned later.

Ore processing flow chart envisages coarse crushing and subsequent two-stage crushing to produce gold concentrate in centrifugal concentrators, copper floatation to produce copper concentrate, copper flotation tailings magnetic separation to produce magnetite concentrate, and joint tailings thickening and storage in the dump.

Proven reserves promise 34 years for the facility’s scheduled life.

The commission of Bystrinsky GOK will provide over 2,375 new jobs in the Zabaikalsky Territory.