Lundin buys out Boliden’s stake in NAN

Vancouver Lundin Mining (LUN-T) is doubling its interest in North Atlantic Natural Resources with the purchase of Boliden’s (BLS-T) 37% stake in the Swedish miner.

Lundin Mining already holds 37.1% in North Atlantic. The latest move will see Lundin issue nearly 2.2 million shares to Boliden – worth some $22.3 million at Lundin’s recent share price of $10.40.

Lundin’s president, Edward Posey, is also president of North Atlantic, while its chairman Lukas Lundin, is also on the board of North Atlantic.

North Atlantic’s main asset is the Storliden zinc-copper-gold-silver mine situated in the Skellefte mining district of northern Sweden. Discovered in 1998, the mine was put into production in 2002, through a joint venture agreement between North Atlantic and Boliden. The latter acts as the main contractor and operator.

Storliden produced over 333,000 tonnes of ore which is treated at the mill in Boliden some 90 km from the mine. As part of the recent agreement, Boliden guarantees that the Boliden facilities will be available throughout the mine’s life.

Proven and probable reserves at Storliden stood at 1.1 million tonnes grading 9.8% zinc and 3.5% copper and 0.3 gram gold and 25.4 grams silver per tonne in December 2003.

North Atlantic aims to extend the life of the Storliden mine through drilling in the immediate area. The company also holds other exploration permits in and around the Skellefte mining district. These include the Lappvattnet copper-nickel prospect south of the district, and the Copperstone copper project in the northern part of the Skellefte district.

Vancouver-based Lundin Mining’s main asset is the Zinkgruvan mine, situated 200 km southwest of Stockholm. The company is also actively exploring its Norbotten project in northern Sweden.