BLOOM LAKE

摘要

Bloom Lake was purchased by Cliffs Natural Resources Limited (Cliffs) in 2011 for US$5.3b. Production instability andtailings management problems caused ramp up delays and FOB costs over US$90/t and the project failed to reachnameplate capacity of 8mtpa of high grade concentrate. Cliffs placed Bloom Lake in care and maintenance in2015.Champion Iron acquired the project out of creditor protection in 2015 with a cash payment plus assumption ofliabilities totaling US$39m.Champion spent US$244m to develop a new mine plan and revise the processing circuit toimprove recovery and increase production which commenced in Q2 2018. Champion predict production of 7.4mtpa and a64% reduction in cash cost compared to the previous operation. In an overheated asset market Cliffs paid too much forthe operation and were unable to control costs. With sunk development costs of US$3b this was a well-timed purchase ofa distressed asset in a rising market for high grade product.