Shareholders approved the divestment of on the Polymetal’s Russian business on 7 March 2024. The transaction presents the most viable opportunity for the Group to restore shareholder value by removing or substantially mitigating critical political, legal, financial and operational risks to the Polymetal Retained Group. Completion of the transaction is expected shortly.
Key facts
| Location | Republic of Karelia, Russia |
| Ownership | 100% |
| Ore Reserves (JORC) estimate expected in | 2H 2021 |
| Mineral Resources (JORC) |
3.5 Moz of Pd at 0.7 g/t average grade 1.3 Moz of Pt at 0.3 g/t average grade 0.7 Moz of Au at 0.1 g/t average grade 157.7 Kt of Cu at 0.10 % average grade |
| Mining | Open-pit |
| Processing | Flotation + off-take |
| Feasibility study | H2 2021 |
Overview
Viksha is Polymetal’s first PGM project, and one the largest open-pit PGM deposits in the world containing roughly 9.5 Moz of palladium equivalent. The license was acquired in 2012. Polymetal holds the 20-year mining license renewed in 2016, which covers a project area of 47km2 that comprises three adjacent zones — Viksha, Kenti and Shargi — each containing platinum, palladium, gold and copper mineralization. Average reef width is 8 m. The maximum depth of the open-pit is 300 m.
Polymetal intends to complete a feasibility study (“FS”) for an Ore Reserve estimate for Viksha in 2H 2021. Provided the development decision which is supposed to be taken in 1H 2024 is positive, the asset could enter production in 2027.
Viksha is located in the Republic of Karelia, approximately 90 km north of the regional capital of Petrozavodsk (population 300,000) and 450 km from St.Petersburg. The infrastructure in the area is well developed, offering easy access to grid power, paved roads, two ports and a railway.
The property lies near the centre of the southern Karelian Craton which is situated within the Archaean granite-greenstone terrain, adjacent to the lower Proterozoic Onega trough.
The Viksha deposit comprises of three adjacent areas within the north-west limb of the syncline structure: Viksha proper, Kenti, and Shargi. All of them contain platinum, palladium, gold and copper mineralisation within the Koikar sill gabbro-dolerites. The outcrop of reef-type mineralisation has been traced for over 20 km.
Viksha mineralisation is localized within the stratified sill rocks at the boundary between the lower gabbro and the upper dolerite zones. The sill has a maximum thickness of approximately 235 m. The underlying dolomite sediments are 40-50 m thick. Mineralised zones are clearly stratified with gold and copper predominance in the upper part, and palladium in the lower part of the mineralisation. The platinum-palladium-gold-enriched layer lies approximately 45 m above the sediments. The reef thickness is 5-11 m.
The near-surface reef-shaped mineralisation forms contiguous ore bodies of considerable width and is amenable to low-cost mechanised bulk open-pit mining. The shallow dip of mineralised zones enables selection of the acceptably low stripping ratios.
| PGM Mineral Resources | Mt | Pd, g/t | Pt, g/t | Au, g/t | Cu, % | Pd, Moz | Pt, Moz | Au, Moz | Cu, Kt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measured | 6.8 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.11 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.03 | 7.2 |
| Indicated | 140.6 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 3.1 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 142.2 |
| Measured + Indicated | 147.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 149.5 |
| Inferred | 9.2 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.09 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.03 | 8.2 |
| Measured + Indicated + Inferred | 156.5 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 3.5 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 157.7 |