Southern Energy previously completed several stages of work on this project. These stages included drilling of the concession to define coal depth and layering within the structure, testing of the coal content of the deposit, environmental impact studies to the Chilean government specifications, water column testing and sampling, dredging studies, recovery systems analysis, environmental recovery methods, costs analysis and a detailed pro forma.
Southern Energy stated that there is an indicated minimum of 275,000 recoverable tonnes within the concession and a probable 75,000 tonnes on the edges of the calculated recoverable drilled reserve according to its studies. The company acquired additional land with access to road, rail, power and water adjacent to the property for a processing site for the coal recovery systems.
Previous owners of the initial Lota Bay Coal Concession completed development work and calculated recoverable drilled reserves of 275,000 tonnes and a further estimated probable reserve of 90,000 tonnes.
