ASX & MEDIA RELEASE Positive Scoping Study Results for Mount Alexander Magnetite Iron Project. ASX CODE: ZNC Activities Mt Alexander Iron Project Earaheedy Manganese Snake Well Base Metals Details as at March 2011 Issued Shares 81.3 m Unlisted options 1.05 m Mkt Cap ($0.50) A$ 40.6 m Cash Mar 2011 A$ 3.7 m Investments A$ 0.22 m Debt Nil Directors Gary Comb Chairman Anthony Hespe Managing Director Stan Macdonald Non Exec Director Mike Joyce Non Exec Director Positive scoping study completed for standalone open cut mine, concentrator and export infrastructure development producing 8 million tonnes per year of high grade iron concentrate at the 100% owned Mount Alexander project in the West Pilbara Capital investment estimated at A$1,698 million, including $178 million contingency, and operating cost estimated at A$56.67/tonne concentrate On an un geared pre tax basis and a product price of US$110/tonne the estimated NPV 8 is A$1,364 million. The project will produce a high grade concentrate grading 68.6% iron and less than 4.5% silica The project will have a twenty year mine life based on treating 560 million tonnes of ore with a head grade of 30.9% Fe. There is high potential to define additional resources to significantly extend mine life Major Shareholders Zenith is actively seeking a partner to develop the project Atlas Iron 10.9 % HSBC Custod 10.3% Yandal Inv. PL 3.8% Breamlea.PL 2.5% Contact Us Zenith Minerals Australia Limited Level 3, 33 Ord Street WEST PERTH WA 6005 PO Box 1426 WEST PERTH WA 6872 Telephone: (08) 9226 1110 Facsimile: (08) 9321 0070 Email: info@zenithminerals.com.au Web: www.zenithminerals.com.au Diamond drilling Mount Alexander
2 Zenith Minerals Limited (ASX:ZNC) is pleased to announce the results of a scoping study on the company s 100% owned Mount Alexander magnetite iron project. The project is located 120 km southwest of the port of Onslow, adjacent to gas energy and road transport infrastructure and to current iron ore development activity in the West Pilbara (Figure 1). Onslow is the site for major expansion as a hydrocarbon export hub by the Western Australian Government which is developing the Ashburton North Strategic Industrial Area 14km south of the town. Figure 1 Mt Alexander Project location and regional infrastructure Resource Base On 14 April 2011 the Company announced a JORC reportable Inferred Mineral Resource at Mount Alexander of 392 million tonnes at 29.5% Fe. DTR tests on 38 core samples from 3 diamond drill holes indicate weight recovery of 30.2% at p80 40 micron grind to a concentrate grading 69.9% Fe and 3.0% SiO 2. The Inferred Mineral Resource is located within the previously announced Exploration Target* (Figure 2) of 0.6 to 1.2 billion tonnes at 25% to 35% Fe. The Inferred Mineral Resource occupies only about 40% of the Exploration Target volume. This supports the potential for further drilling within the Exploration Target volume to define a resource towards the upper range of the Exploration Target tonnage.
3 Additional resources may also be defined at Mount Alexander West and north east around the closure of the regional anticline (Figure 3) *JORC Code 2004 statement regarding the term Exploration Target: The potential quantity and grade of this Exploration Target is conceptual in nature. There has been insufficient exploration to define a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource Scoping Study Results The study was undertaken by independent consultants ProMet Engineers Pty Ltd. a process plant design, engineering services and metallurgical consultancy based in Perth, Western Australia. The study proposes production of 8 million tonnes per year of concentrate for the first 20 years of operation from an assumed inventory of 560 million tonnes of ore with a head grade of 30.9% iron. The description of the resource base above shows that this tonnage is realistically achievable. If drilling defines additional JORC resources close to the upper limit of the Exploration Target range the mine life would be significantly extended. Based on test work on 38 core samples from three diamond drill holes the study applies a weight recovery of 30.2% at p80 40 micron grind and a DTR grade of 69.9% Fe and 3.0% SiO 2. The product will be a blast furnace grade concentrate grading 68.6% Fe and less than 4.5% SiO 2 (after allowing for plant inefficiencies). Aluminum and phosphorous levels will be minimal. The plant will include a flotation section to reduce sulphur content to less than 0.2%. The main components of the project are: The pre strip and establishment costs of an open cut mine at Mount Alexander to be operated by a contract miner Ore processing at Mount Alexander including crushing, grinding, wet magnetic separation and sulphur removal by flotation to produce a magnetite concentrate Infrastructure at Mount Alexander including accommodation, offices, workshops, tailings storage and bore field
4 Transport of the concentrate as a slurry by pipeline to Onslow Dewatering and storage of the concentrate in a closed shed at Onslow Covered conveyor transport from the shed to a barge port Transport by barge to an offshore mooring for transfer into ships for export Third party owned/operated 120Mw power station at Onslow HV power line from Onslow to Mount Alexander Capital and operating costs The project capital cost is estimated at $1,698 million including a contingency of $178 million. Operating cost is estimated at $56.57/tonne concentrate. If the project builds and operates the power station capital costs increase to $1,864 million and operating cost reduces to $50.33/tonne concentrate. Capital and operating expenditure may be reduced by sharing infrastructure with the development of the Ashburton North Strategic Industrial hydrocarbon hub at Onslow including the power station, barge port and a desalination plant (in lieu of a bore field). Financial analysis Based on a discount rate of 8%, a concentrate value of $US110/tonne FOB Onslow and royalty of $5.50/tonne concentrate and ignoring tax the NPV over a 20 year mine life is $1,364 million and IRR 17.4%. For the case where the project builds and operates the power station, NPV is $1,614 million and IRR 18.1%. Alternative export infrastructure Alternative export infrastructure in the region includes the proposed Anketell Port and the undeveloped sites reserved for other users at Citic Pacific s Cape Preston barge port site (Figure 1). The API Joint Venture has announced that rail infrastructure for its West Pilbara iron project, which is planned to extend to within 80km of Mount Alexander, will be available for third party users. Onslow is significantly closer to Mount Alexander than these alternatives and is the preferred option for export infrastructure.
5 Forward strategy Based on these positive results the Company has commenced seeking a development partner for the project. The Company will continue work to de risk the project including environmental studies and stakeholder consultation. Figure 2 Oblique view looking north east of the maiden Inferred Resource volume (yellow) overlain on Exploration Target volume (red)
6 Figure 3 Aeromagnetic images and location of project mineralisation and resources The Mount Alexander Project Zenith Minerals Limited (Zenith) announced the discovery of magnetite banded Iron Formation (BIF) at Mount Alexander in October 2009 (ASX release 28 Oct 2009). Since then Zenith has completed: Collection of 589 surface rock chip samples and assay for a suite of elements including iron over the central 4km zone of the BIF horizon (28 Oct 2009, 19 Nov 2009) Davis Tube recovery indicator tests on surface magnetite samples (13 Nov 2009) 3 diamond drill holes on the north west flank of the BIF ridge (11 March 2010) Estimation of an Exploration Target (11 March 2010) DTR analysis of 38 drill core samples representative of the mineralisation (15 April 2010)
7 Ground magnetics extending the strike length of the BIF horizons within ZNC tenements to 14.8 strike km (29 June 2010) 12 RC drill holes at the Mount Alexander West magnetic anomaly (30 August 2010) Detailed mapping at 1:2,500 scale over the central 4km zone of the BIF horizon (Dec Q 28 January 2011) New airborne magnetic survey (Dec Q 28 January 2011) Detailed mapping at 1:2,500 scale over Mt Alexander West (March Q 2011) Resource drilling program of 12 RC holes at Mount Alexander (29 March 2011) Inferred Mineral Resource estimate (14 April 2011) The Mount Alexander project is near the port of Onslow, 260 kilometres south west of Karratha and well located with respect to infrastructure. The North West Coastal Highway is 10 kilometres west of the project and the Dampier Bunbury gas pipeline passes to the west of the highway (Figure 1). The project consists of three exploration licences owned 100% by Zenith. On 11 March 2010 Zenith announced an Exploration Target* at the Mount Alexander Prospect, within E08/1410, of 0.6 to 1.2 billion tonnes at between 25% and 35% iron. This estimation is based on results from detailed geological mapping, diamond core drilling and 580 surface rock samples. Davis Tube Recovery Tests indicate that Mount Alexander mineralization can produce a concentrate with grade of 69.9% Fe and 3% SiO 2. On 14 April 2011 the Company announced an Inferred Mineral Resource estimate of 392 million tonnes at 29.5% Fe. The Inferred Mineral Resource is located within the Exploration Target and occupies approximately 40% of the Exploration Target volume. The Mount Alexander magnetite mineralisation occurs in a banded iron formation associated with a sequence of amphibolite, dolomite, schist and quartzite of Proterozoic age in the northern Gascoyne Province. These rocks have been folded into a regional scale north east trending anticline and metamorphosed to upper greenschist and amphibolite grade. The core of the anticline is intruded by the Mortgage monzonite stock which is related to tungsten and lead zinc mineralization in the area.
8 *JORC Code 2004 statement regarding the term Exploration Target: The potential quantity and grade of this Exploration Target is conceptual in nature. There has been insufficient exploration to define a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource Zenith Minerals Limited 10 May 2011 For further information contact Michael Joyce Director 08 9481 4440 Anthony Hespe Managing Director 08 9226 1110 About Zenith Minerals Zenith is a Perth based company focused on increasing shareholder value by the identification, exploration and development of zinc and other metal deposits, principally in Australia. Zenith listed as Zinc Co on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in May 2007 (ASX Code ZNC) with five projects in Western Australia. All of the projects have significant drill intercepts of zinc mineralisation at relatively shallow depth. In 2009 Zenith reported discovery of an iron deposit at the Mount Alexander project which has potential for a large magnetite resource. In 2010 Zenith reported discovery of high grade manganese in the Earaheedy Basin. Competent Persons Statements The information in this report that relates to Exploration Results is based on information compiled by A M Hespe, who is a Member of the Australasian Institute of Geoscientists. Mr Hespe has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves'. Mr Hespe is a full time employee of Zenith and consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appear The information in this Report that relates to in situ Mineral Resources is based on information compiled by Grant Louw of CSA Global. Grant Louw takes overall responsibility for the Mineral Resource estimate. He is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and has sufficient experience, which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration, and to the activity he is undertaking, to qualify as a Competent Person in terms of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (JORC Code 2004 Edition). Grant Louw consents to the inclusion of such information in this Report in the form and context in which it appears. The information in this report that relates to the Scoping Study has been approved for release by ProMet Engineers Pty. Ltd