PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Copper/gold miner Oz Minerals has started the hunt for a joint venture (JV) partner for its Carrapateena project, in South Australia.

“We have been very open in saying that the development of this project is beyond our capacity to prudently fund on a sole basis, and so we have commenced informally talking to parties about how we could partner on the project,” Oz Minerals chairperson Neil Hamilton told shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting, in Melbourne.

The Carrapateena project was currently undergoing a prefeasibility study, which would be completed during the first half of this year. Since a 2012 resource estimate, the total mineral resource for the Carrapateena project had increased from 760-million tonnes to 800-million tonnes, grading 0.8% copper and 0.3 g/t gold for 6.3-million tonnes of contained copper and 8.4-million ounces of contained gold.

Hamilton said on Tuesday that to keep its options open, and to produce the best value for shareholders, Oz has not yet narrowed its discussions with potential JV partners into a formal sales process, with a set timetable and deliverables.

“Judging by the interest received to date, we would hope that a favourable outcome can be reached that sees us working alongside a partner in developing the project.

“However, we are open to all options, which might include placing the project effectively on care and maintenance, and not incurring any material expenditure until we find the right outcome that fully benefits our shareholders.”

Meanwhile, MD and CEO Terry Burgess noted that the company also continued to focus on targeted exploration as a means of creating shareholder value.

He pointed out that the company was undertaking a range of drilling initiatives, including at the Fremantle Doctor prospect, near Carrapateena, where Oz Minerals has intersected visual copper mineralisation.

“Part of our strategy also remains to organically grow a project pipeline through regional greenfield exploration. We are not dedicating large amounts of expenditure to this work, but are conducting low-cost exploration on some projects which have the potential for high rewards,” Burgess said.