Mawarid Secures Permit to Re-Operate Tailings Dam

Press Release

Mawarid Mining has successfully secured its permit from the relevant authorities to recommence the storage of mine tailings at the Lasail Tailings Storage Facility (TSF).

Tailings are a by-product of mining. After ore containing an economically-recoverable commodity is mined from the earth, that commodity is extracted in a processing plant or mill. After the commodity of value is extracted from the ore material, the resultant waste stream is termed “tailings”. Typically, mill tailings range from sand to silt-clay in particle size.

Mr. Chris Jordinson, Deputy CEO and Chief Commercial Officer of Mawarid Mining, said:

“Once our operations in the Al Ghuzayn underground copper mine begin, the ore will be transported to Lasail Copper Concentrator to be processed with the final product – copper concentrates, being shipped around the world. The Tailings Storage Facility is a vital component of the Lasail Copper Concentrator.”

Mr. Haitham Al Bahrani, Chief Corporate Officer at Mawarid Mining LLC, said:

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the government stakeholders who supported the re-permitting of the Tailings Storage Facility, including the Environmental Authority in Al Batinah and Sohar Municipality.”

The Tailings Storage facility completed construction in 2010 for storage of the mine waste tailings from the ore processed at the Lasail copper concentrator. A key element in the design of the Tailings Storage Facility is the recovery of process water (~70%) for reuse in the concentrator, thus reducing requirements for additional external water resources.