Feasibility studies have proven to be an absolutely critical step in the path towards a successful mine. In recent years, many large projects have failed because of out-of-date or missing feasibility studies. For example, Baja Mining proceeded to construction based on a Preliminary Feasibility Study. Their capital cost and operating cost forecasts were inaccurate and this resulted in their collapse. As a more extreme example, Ivanhoe Mine's Oyu Tolgoi project is now billions over budget after they proceeded to construction without a full feasibility study.

Clearly, getting Copper Fox's feasibility study "right" is a critical step in the mine development. However, it is just one step. The feasibility study is simply meant to confirm that the mine will be economic with a reasonable level of certainty. It also provides a path forward to development. The next steps after the feasibility study will be Detailed Engineering and purchasing of long lead items.

I don't understand how Copper Fox has not been able to complete a feasibility study yet. If the project is economic, then they should deliver these results to Teck so that we can get moving towards development. These delays in the feasibility study are beginning to seriously impact the project timeline (EAA submission, road permits, equipment orders, etc). If we don't get news very soon, I'm going to begin harassing management for some answers. Spending all of 2012 to drill 6 holes and still not have a completed feasibility study is a failure in my books.