Oropesa Tin Project
The Oropesa Tin Project is located in the Guadiato Valley, in the Province of Cordoba, within the Andalucía Autonomous Region, Spain, and as a result, is strategically located within the European Union. Oropesa has one of the world’s largest undeveloped, open-cut tin deposits, and is the only tin project being actively developed within the Europeans Union, with access to Spain’s world-class infrastructure. The project is at an advanced stage of development, significantly progressed through its DFS and working with the authorities to attain its major project approvals.
The project is a “State Significant Project” in Andalucia (being a member of the Government’s “Project Accelerator Unit”) and of strategic significance to the European Union which is committed to sourcing a responsible and local ‘domestic’ supply of critical minerals like tin.
The Oropesa tenement consists of an exploration concession package (Investigation Permit No. 13.050) covering an area of 13km2, located approximately 75km north-west of city of Cordoba and 180km north-east of the capital of Seville in southern Spain. The Oropesa district has historically been a mining district for base metals (copper, lead, silver, and iron) and coal, with coal mining ceasing in recent times on European Union intervention, leaving the region eager for further industrial and mining investments.
Poised to be Europe’s next major tin mine
- Open-cut tin mining and processing operation producing tin concentrates for smelters in Europe, North America or Asia.
- Responsible approach to mining, with strong local community support.
- Mining friendly jurisdiction, close to European electronic manufacturing hubs.
- Andalucian region (part of Iberian Pyrite Belt) is home to some of Spain’s largest mines:
- MATSA mining complex (~200km) owned by Sandfire Resources (ASX).
- Rio Tinto Copper Mine (~120km) owned by Atalaya Mining (LME)
- Cobre Las Cruces Copper Mine (~100km) owned by First Quantum Minerals (TSX)
- Aznalcóllar and Los Frailes mines (~110km) owned by Grupo Mexico
Figure 1 – Site location of project
Smelter integration – Mine to metal production within Spain & the EU
Elementos has signed an option term sheet to acquire up to 50% interest in Iberian Smelting S.L, the company which owns the Robledallano Tin Smelter, which is licenced and currently operating.
JORC Mineral Resources
The Oropesa Tin Project contains a JORC compliant Measured, Indicated and Inferred Resource.
The tin mineralisation (cassiterite with minor stannite) occurs as a replacement style orebody associated with sulphides, predominantly pyrite and pyrrhotite within a sedimentary sequence at the contact between sandstone and conglomerate units. Widespread folding of the sedimentary sequence has resulted in the mineralised sequence being overturned and repeated in places
Primary Approvals Submissions
Elementos is well advanced in developing its revised Primary License submissions for the Oropesa Tin Project in the Cordoba Province, within Andalucia. These three submissions are the key submissions required to attain the two Primary Licenses for the project, including; Mining Licence (Exploitation Licence) and Environmental Authorisation (Autorización Ambiental Unificada – AAU) for its flagship Oropesa Tin Project in Spain.
The documents to be lodged include:
- Exploitation (Mining) Project
- Restoration Plan
- Environmental Impact Study.
The project has significant support within the Junta de Andalucia (Government) and remains a key mining project within the Government’s Project Accelerator Unit (Unidad Aceleradora de Proyectos).
In addition to the Primary Approvals submissions being developed, the company recently submitted an extension to its Investigation permit for the main Oropesa tenement and is in close contact with the Mining Department on the processing of this extension, which is required before the submission of the Primary Approvals documents.
