Tuesday, October 24 2017 15:38

ArmInfo. The Amulsar Project has officially completed the physical component of its ICMC Pre-Operational Conditional Certification Verification Audit. The physical component of the Audit occurred between the 15th and 19th of October 2017.

An independent Audit is a requirement of ICMI to independently assess the Company's compliance with ICMC principles and standards of practice. The Cyanide Code is a voluntary industry program for gold and silver mining companies. It focuses exclusively on the safe management of cyanide.  Companies that adopt the Cyanide Code must have their mining operations that use cyanide to recover gold and/or silver audited by an independent third party to determine the status of Cyanide Code implementation.  The audit is conducted by an independent professional third-party Lead Auditor, who meets the criteria for experience, expertise, and a lack of conflict of interest - as defined by the International Cyanide Management Institute (ICMI). The auditor is listed both as a Lead Auditor and Technical Specialist on the ICMI website.  The audit entailed interviews with Lydian Armenia's recently formed Cyanide Management Committee, as well as other key Project personnel.  In addition to interviews, the physical audit involved a physical inspection of ongoing works at Amulsar, as well as a review of key Project documentation.  The Independent third-party Auditor submission for Pre-Operational Conditional Certification of the Amulsar Operation will be subject to a completeness review by the ICMI, and if accepted, results will be published in due process by the ICMI. If certification is achieved, it would make Lydian Armenia the first Operation to achieve Pre-Operational Conditional Certification since revisions to the Code in December 2016.  Pre-Operational Certification is a voluntary and uncommon initiative Lydian has undertaken to become compliant at a Pre-Operational stage, and demonstrates Lydian's commitment to compliance with the International Cyanide Management Code.

The application "Lydian International", which owns 100% of the shares of the company "Lydian Armenia", on joining the initiative the Institute of the International Cyanide Code (ICMC) adopted in September 2016.  The Code regulates the production of cyanide in the extraction of gold, its transfer and use. The Code's principles will be applied in the implementation of the Amulsar development program in Armenia.

To recall, "Lydian Armenia" is a subsidiary of the British Lydian International, whose shareholders are also large international institutional investors from the United States, Great Britain, a number of European countries, including IFC and EBRD. The Amulsar project is the largest industrial project in Armenia for the development of the Amulsar gold deposit at a total cost of $ 370 million. In August 2016, a project for the construction and development of the field was launched. Preliminary work has been carried out since 2006.  The life of the Amulsar deposit will be 10 years and 4 months, an annual average of 200,000 ounces of gold (about 10 million tons of ore) is planned. The company's shares are quoted on the Toronto Stock Exchange.  Amulsar deposit is the second largest in Armenia.