Canada’s Zarcan International Resources reduced its spending on projects in Iran by 49 percent in the first quarter of 2003. The company recorded a working capital deficit of $1,55 million and a long-term loan payable of $1.2 during the same period.
Last month, the management of the company announced that it had received the extension of exploration licenses granted by the Iranian Ministry of Industries and Mines for 10 concession areas located in the Province of Sistan va Baluchestan in southeastern Iran.
The concessions, each about 40 square kilometers, were selected after four years of regional mapping by geologists of Madani Zarcan Taftan, the company's wholly owned subsidiary, of 30,800 square kilometers in that province. The concessions contain favorable exploration targets based on regional geological mapping, geochemistry, historical mining and geophysics.
The Phase II exploration program was continued in the current quarter with the aim to secure proper title documents for the following 10 concession areas. The company received the Exploration Licenses at the beginning of the year. The Company currently has problems of local access to the area known as Kutan. Currently the company is trying to reach an agreement.
PZA, the affiliate of Zarcan Minerals, has received Exploration Licenses for 4 additional concessions that cover new mineralization found in the area. Exploration work continues with 14 new trenches sampled and logged. Design work of the road between the mine site and the plant site has been completed and road construction between the existing road and the plant site is currently underway.
A contract has been signed for heap leach metallurgical tests in Iran. Forty tons of samples have been gathered and transported to the test site, the tests have been completed, and the preliminary results are favorable. The company is currently waiting for final results of these tests.
PZA has signed an agreement with the Iranian Energy Authority for purchasing 3.5 megawatts of electricity from the national grid. The earthwork for the plant site will start in late Spring. PZA is currently investigating the purchase of a recently decommissioned CIL processing plant for Agh Darreh. A modern communication system has been installed and connected from the mine site to national system. A new communication station will be installed in the plant site.
PZA has increased its capital from one million dollars to $$2.5 million in late March 2003 and applied for a loan from the Iranian Bank Mellat for execution of the plant in the Agh Darreh Gold Project. The government royalty has been paid for the Exploitation Licenses and PZA has selected a qualified mining consultant to direct mine planning.
In April, PZA informed Zarcan Minerals that the capital will be further increased from $2.5 Million to three million dollars, the total capital authorized by the shareholders. Zarcan's contribution is $200,000 which is requested to be paid by June 28, 2003. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
