Saindak Metals Limited (SML) produced 76,125.994 tons of copper, 6.093 tons gold and 9.693 tons of silver from the Saindak area, district Chaghi of the Balochistan province, during last five years. "The total blister copper extraction/production stood at 76,141.780 tons from 2011 to 2015, and total the income/sale/revenue remained $834.209 million," official sources in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources told media Saturday.
As a result of exploration carried out in the Saindak area by SML, previously known as the Resource Development Corporation, they said the quantity of mineral deposit/copper ore was estimated at 412 million tons. "Accounting for the ore extracted during 13 years of the Saindak Copper-Gold project operation, the available copper ore deposit is estimated at 353 million tons," they said.
The sources said the mineral deposit found in the project area contained copper, gold and silver, adding that the ore was processed to produce blister copper. Giving break-up of the production, they said in 2011, the production of copper, gold and silver stood at 17,011.176 tons, 1.369 tons and 2.175 tons, respectively. In 2012, SML produced 17,829.277 tons of copper, 1.439 tons of gold and 2.354 tons of silver. While, 15,738.461 tons of copper, 1.261 tons of gold and 1.988 tons of silver in 2013. Whereas, the production of the three minerals in 2014 remained 13,275.492 tons, 1.009 tons and 1.609 tons, respectively. The company produced 12,271.588 tons of copper, 1.015 tons of gold and 9.693 tons of silver in 2015, they added.