Rambler's Ming mine may last years longer than expected

The lifespan of the Rambler gold and copper mine outside Baie Verte has been extended to 21 years, well beyond the original projection the company worked with when it launched the Ming property five years ago.

Rambler Metals and Mining PLC has released a study that shows the mine should be able to stay in business for years to come, and likely will need to hire new staff.

"It's big. It's big numbers, and we're quite pleased with the results," chief executive officer Norman Williams said in an interview.

Williams said an expansion area known as the Lower Footwall Zone marks a significant advance for a mine that originally appeared set to run out of raw copper by 2016.

"Adding it gives us that ability to come back to the market and demonstrate that, yeah, we are indeed a longer-life mine than that five or six years we originally started with back in 2010," he told CBC Radio's Central Morning Show.

'We remain bullish on copper'

Williams said the pre-feasibility study confirms knowledge that the company has been acquiring for some time about the available resources at the Baie Verte Peninsula property.

"Every year we continue to go underground and drill off and add more ore …We knew there was more than five or six years," he said.

Rambler has between 130 and 150 full-time and part-time employees on its payroll, and expects to hire more as production ramps up to a 2018 target of 1,250 tonnes per day. Current production involves about 1,000 tonnes per day.

"We remain bullish on copper," said Williams, commenting on the global marketplace.

He said the recent slide in the Canadian dollar has been helpful, as copper is sold against American currency.

"Obviously, we'd like to see a higher copper price, but right now the margins are still OK for us to continue," he said.