Australian Mining Oct.29--New Century Resources has loaded its first zinc concentrate from the Queensland-based Century zinc restart onto the shipping vessel MV Wunma at Karumba Port.  

The first shipment consists of 10,000 tonnes of zinc concentrate for delivery to one of China’s largest smelting groups. The shipment included no lead or carbon penalty and only an “immaterial” silica penalty, according to New Century. 

A second shipment of 10,000 tonnes of commissioning-grade concentrate is expected to be shipped to China in January 2019. This will generate $15.3 million in forward sales revenue.  

New Century managing director Patrick Walta called it a milestone for the company.

“This milestone represents an incredible achievement by the entire New Century team,” he said. “To start shipping concentrate just 15 months after listing is a testament to the strong dedication and culture within the company.  

“The entire team should be proud of their role in the achievements of the business to date which is creating a strong platform for continued growth at Century and beyond.”

The operation’s phase one production is set at 8Mt/y with plans to grow to 15Mt/y in phase two. This target is planned for the fourth quarter of 2019.  

Its concentrates are delivered to Karumba Port via a 304km pipeline developed by the company.  

Previously one of the world’s biggest zinc producers, the Century project was restarted in September by New Century, having been closed by former owner MMG in early 2016.