Archive for the ‘Life Extension’ Category

Melbourne Feb 25, 2020 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of OceanaGold Corp earnings conference call or presentation Thursday, February 20, 2020 at 9:30:00pm GMT

* Scott A. McQueen

Good morning and afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the OceanaGold 2019 Full Year Financial Results Webcast and Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Note that this call is being recorded, Thursday, February 20 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

And I would like to turn the conference over to Sam Pazuki. Please go ahead, sir.

Thank you, operator. Good evening, good morning, and welcome to OceanaGold's Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2019 Results Webcast and Conference Call. I am Sam Pazuki, the Vice President of Investor Relations for OceanaGold. I am joined today by Mick Wilkes, President and CEO of OceanaGold; along with Michael Holmes, Chief Operating Officer; and Scott McQueen, Chief Financial Officer.

For this webcast, we will initially discuss our 2019 operational and financial performance, and we will then shift the focus of the presentation to the upcoming year before turning it to you for questions.

Moving on to Slide #2. Before we proceed, note that the references in this presentation adhere to International Financial Reporting Standards, and all financial figures are denominated in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise stated. Also note that the presentation contains forward-looking statements, which by their very nature, are subject to some degree of uncertainty. There can be no assurances that our forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as future results and events could differ materially. Please refer to the disclaimer on forward-looking statements in our presentation.

I will now turn it over to Mick Wilkes.

Michael Francis Wilkes, OceanaGold Corporation - President, CEO, MD & Director [3]

Thank you, Sam, and hello, everybody. It's a pleasure to be with you today from New Zealand. As I've noted before, 2019 was a challenging year for us. We did close the year on a positive note with strong operational and financial performance from Haile and our New Zealand operations, which delivered an increase of nearly 20% in gold production quarter-on-quarter, while all-in sustaining costs decreased 13%.

In Haile, production increased 26% from the third quarter while costs continued to trend lower. In fact, since the start of 2019, we've reduced our all-in sustaining costs by approximately 40% over the course of the year. Mining unit cost decreased from $5.55 per tonne mined in the fourth quarter of 2018 to just over $3 per tonne mined in the fourth quarter of 2019. Processing unit costs were $14.81 per tonne milled in Q4 2018, and just over $12 per tonne milled in Q4 2019. We expect the unit cost to continue to trend lower in 2020.

Macraes also delivered a strong quarter of production which increased 20% quarter-on-quarter, while Waihi delivered steady production as expected. Fourth quarter adjusted earnings per share on a fully diluted basis was better than previous quarter, in line with analysts' consensus figures.

Despite improved performance at the other sites, fourth quarter earnings were impacted by the continued suspension of operations at Didipio with higher corporate, general and administrative costs, including approximately $10 million in carrying costs to maintain Didipio in a state of operational readiness. Fourth quarter cash flow per share before working capital and on a fully diluted basis was $0.02 higher than the previous quarter at $0.07.

In the fourth quarter, we continued to advance the Martha Underground development with approximately 830 meters of development and completion of the ventilation shaft between the levels 800 and 900 drives. Development over the course of the year is expected to gradually increase, and we are on track for first production in the second quarter of 2021.

Exploration continues to yield positive results, particularly at Waihi, where we focus drilling at the Martha Underground and WKP projects. Just last week, we announced an updated resource for Martha Underground Project, which included a significant increase to indicated resources, which now stand at 824,000 ounces of gold, while inferred resources stood at 614,000 ounces. The average grade for both categories at Martha have also increased from the previous resource.

Moving on to Slide 4 and our ESG update. OceanaGold has operated a sustainable business for the past 30 years by applying robust ESG practices across our business. We are proud of our ability to discover orebodies, build projects, operate mines and rehabilitate depleted mines. This is clearly demonstrated by the work we've been doing at the Reefton mine on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. You can see from the photo on the left that the Globe Pit, which operated for about 9 years, is transforming into a new freshwater lake surrounded by native forest. And since the mine closed in 2016, we have completed over 100 hectares of rehabilitation and planted more than 700,000 native seedlings with another 300,000 seedlings to be planted over the next 3 years.

On the social front, we are grateful for the strong show of support from the company -- for the company for the Didipio mine and the renewal of the FTAA at a large, public rally in Manila, as shown on the middle photograph. Approximately 1,200 members of host communities, including indigenous people, traveled 10 hours each way to rally for 2 hours in front of the Presidential Palace.

ESG is -- OceanaGold is a top ESG performer, as measured by the major ESG rating agencies. Although we are proud of our ESG performance and the programs we have, we can always do better. Driving for improvements in health and safety continue to be a critical component of our business, and our total recordable injury frequency rate improved in 2019.

Moving on to Slide 5 and the discussion about Didipio. The resumption of Didipio operations is our top priority. The FTAA renewal process currently sits with the Office of the President after it was re-endorsed by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau before Christmas. We have -- we've had good engagement with national and local stakeholders and support from different levels of government and the regulatory agencies. We have retained our workforce to continue in a state of operational readiness so we can ramp up following the resolution. We've maintained this state of operational readiness since we were forced to suspend operations in October 2019. However, we cannot continue this state indefinitely. If operations are permitted to recommence, then we believe we can achieve full rates of production of 10,000 ounces of gold plus 1,000 tonnes of copper per month within 4 to 6 weeks. If operational permits are not received and we decide to proceed to full care and maintenance, significant workforce reductions would result, and we may be looking at a ramp-up to full production of up to 12 months.

Moving on to Slide 6 and the voice of our host communities. As I mentioned before, we are thankful for the overwhelming support from our host communities. Since July 2019, thousands of people have come together to organize rallies to support the renewal and the lifting of the barricade imposed by the provincial governor. Community groups have held dozens of meetings with government officials and submitted dozens of letters of support to the Office of the President. The communities want this mine, and they want Oceana's goldwork to continue. The Didipio mine has changed the lives of tens of thousands of people for the better. Families across the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino have jobs, access to improved health services, better schools, better roads, access to markets and a better quality of life because of the Didipio mine. We are proud of the work that we have done at Didipio and the partnerships we have built with communities.

I'll now turn it over to Scott to discuss the financial results.

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Scott A. McQueen, OceanaGold Corporation - Executive VP & CFO [4]

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Thank you, Mick, and hello, everyone. Over the next few slides, we'll cover some key aspects of our fourth quarter and full year 2019 financial performance.

Moving on to Slide 8. Revenue in the fourth quarter increased approximately 14% from the previous quarter due to higher gold sales from Macraes and Haile, which both demonstrated strong fourth quarter operational performance. Full year revenue of $651 million was lower than the previous year due to the absence of sales from Didipio in the second half of the year. This was partially offset by a higher average gold price received. EBITDA increased 33% quarter-on-quarter on our higher revenues, which was partially offset by higher corporate, general and administrative costs. Note that the costs incurred to maintain Didipio in its state of operational readiness were included as part of corporate D&A costs in the fourth quarter. These totaled approximately $10 million. In addition to this, we had $3.4 million noncash write-off related to prior production taxes in the Philippines. As a result, these 2 factors combined to reduce earnings in the quarter by around $0.02 a share. Lower year-on-year EBITDA reflects the second half suspension of Didipio and the associated cost to maintain the asset in its state of operational readiness. Net profit for the quarter was $8.7 million, while adjusted net profit was a negative $0.7 million after adjusting for unrealized gains on hedges of $13.4 million and a write-off of approximately $4 million of exploration costs which are associated with joint venture agreements terminated during the quarter. Net profit for the year was $14.5 million, and the adjusted net profit for the full year was $32.1 million.

Moving to the cash flow summary on Slide 9. Operating cash flows increased quarter-on-quarter to $46.7 million or $0.07 per share with a minimal change in net working capital. The increase in operating cash flow was a result of higher gold sales in Haile, which is partially offset by the absence of sales from Didipio and the associated carrying costs already noted. Investing and financing cash flows were similar quarter-on-quarter. For the full year, the increase in investing cash flow largely reflected higher exploration costs related to the growth projects in the Waihi district. The year-on-year decrease in financing cash flow relates mainly to the discretionary debt repayment we made in 2018.

Turning to Slide 10, which included some additional detail on our capital expenditure. Full year capital expenditure in 2019 was at the bottom end of the guidance range of $240 million. Our investments in growth capital were mainly at Waihi with the start-up development of Martha and, of course, the continuation of the Haile expansion. Our investment in exploration in the Waihi district continues to yield strong results as resource growth just announced the Martha Underground last week.

Moving on to Slide 11 and a snapshot of our balance sheet. As at the end of 2019, our cash balance was $49 million, giving us immediately available liquidity of $99 million. Our net debt increased slightly to $179 million, primarily as a result of the increase of approximately $32 million in equipment leases mainly at Haile, where the new fleet is being progressively added in support of the expansion and increased production rates.

Our balance sheet continues to have relatively low financial leverage with a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 0.84. With the support of our long-term bank group, as previously announced, we agreed amendments to our corporate debt facilities in November, whereby we eliminated the [$50 million] step-down and extended the maturity until the end of 2021.

Before moving to the outlook for 2020, I'll spend a minute just having a look at Slide 12, which shows how we've managed our balance sheet over the past several years. Balance sheet's always been managed in a prudent manner by not carrying excess levels of debt. Leverage has been increased as required to support growth and then reduced during production, in production mode and free cash flow allows. Clearly demonstrated by the graphs where leverage increased through peak construction in Didipio around 2012, and also Haile in 2017, both followed by periods of debt reduction. Most recently, you will recall our discretionary debt repayment of $50 million in late 2018.

The continued suspension of operations at Didipio is impacting cash flows. We are monitoring liquidity levels constantly and have options at our disposal to manage through the uncertainty and continue to support the growth projects in our business. The first step in that process was the amendment made to the debt facilities in late 2019. And we will continue to focus on executing prudent options as required to support the continued delivery of key growth projects, including the expansion of the Haile mine, the development of the underground at Martha, further drilling at WKP, and life of mine extension options at Macraes.

Moving to the outlook on Slide 14. As you know, we published our 2020 guidance a couple of weeks ago. On a consolidated basis, excluding Didipio at this stage, we expect to produce between 360,000 and 380,000 ounces of gold, which is similar to what we delivered in 2019 from those operations. All-in sustaining costs are expected to range between $1,075 and $1,125 per ounce sold. We expected to produce approximately 25% more gold this year, offsetting the decrease in production at Waihi where the mill will complete -- where we will complete mining of Correnso orebody this quarter before production from Martha Underground in Q2 2021.

Our capital investment program for 2020 includes an increase in pre-stripping and site mining infrastructure associated with the Haile expansion, where we are bringing forward 2 open pits originally planned for mining in 2021; capital associated with the development of the Martha Underground Project; and the road realignment and the movement of underground mine infrastructure at Macraes to allow for future production. The exploration spend is approximately half that of the previous year as we have narrowed our focus to support the current mine plans, Martha Underground and WKP.

I'll now turn it over to Michael to discuss in more detail the outlook for each operations.

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Michael Harvy Lou Holmes, OceanaGold Corporation - Executive VP & COO [5]

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Thank you, Scott, and hello, everyone. Moving on to Slide 15 and the overview of Haile for 2020. Haile ended 2019 on a high note with 26% higher production and lower costs relative to the third quarter. In fact, Haile improved every quarter through 2019 as productivity increased and unit costs decreased. We expect continued improvement this year through our larger mine program and utilization of the newly built and commissioned mining equipment. Haile is expected to produce between 180,000 and 190,000 ounces of gold, which represents an approximate 25% increase in gold production from 2019. The site all-in sustaining costs are expected to decrease and range between $1,080 and $1,130 per ounce sold, while mining unit costs are expected to decrease as the year progresses.

Haile's production profile is second half-weighted with 2/3 of the year's gold output expected in the second half of the year, which is driven by the mining schedule. Higher recoveries are expected in the second half, consistent with higher grades and embedded process plant improvements. We expect production to increase every quarter of the year, while the all-in sustaining costs are expected to decrease each quarter. Haile's all-in sustaining costs will be significantly higher in the first half of the year then significantly lower in the second half to average out to our guidance range.

Mining rates will increase significantly this year as we plan to mine between 50 million and 55 million tonnes of material, including 3.5 million to 4 million tonnes of ore. This compares to approximately 25 million tonnes of material mined in 2019. The mining activities will be supported by the new 15 -- new Komatsu 730E 200-tonne haulage trucks, of which we currently have 12 in service, and expect all 15 to be online by the end of the first quarter, which is ahead of schedule. In addition to these large trucks, we have upgraded the fleet with 1 Komatsu PC3000 excavator, 2 Komatsu PC4000 shovels and 4 new Sandvik DR140is drill rigs to support the increased mining rates.

The process plant continues to achieve higher throughput rates, and we expect mill -- to mill approximately 14% more ore this year than in 2019. We have recently completed the commissioning of the pre-aeration [pit now], which is the last new component of the upgraded regrind service. Our focus for the processing plant now turns to improving recoveries while continually increasing throughput.

As I mentioned, with the enhancement of the open pit operations, we are revisiting the Horseshoe underground mine plan. This study work is underway and will include further analysis of the appropriate backfill to use, which will dictate the mining sequence. We will also select the mining fleet that will support underground operations and use technology similar to what we implemented at Didipio. We expect to have more details on this work in the second half of the year. However, we will likely defer the start of the portal development to 2021. The capital -- the growth capital for 2020 does not include the Horseshoe underground development.

In the meantime, the permitting of the Horseshoe underground is progressing to plan, and we expect the notice of decision from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the near term.

The growth capital investments at Haile are focused on the expansion of the mining operations, which includes a 3-meter lift of the carbon storage facility, which represents half of the growth capital investment for 2020. In addition to the TSF, we are investing in the construction of a large potential out of an acid-generating or PAG cell, which is currently under construction and cost approximately $20 million.

In addition to these investments, we are upgrading the water treatment plant, expanding our dewatering facilities, and relocating an overhead power line to allow for the mining of Mill Zone phase 2 which we brought forward by 6 months from the original mine plan.

Moving on to Slide 16 in Haile physicals. It has been a challenging start as we ramp up Haile. However, we are feeling much better with how the operation is progressing. We do still consider Haile to be a new mine with a long mine life. We have been ramping it up since it went into operations. Mining was challenged by the extreme weather events in quarter 4 2018 that took us by surprise, and the recovery was much longer than expected. The U.S. economy has been very strong, which has led to a labor shortage and impacted our employee turnover, which we have now stabilized. We have upskilled the workforce by recruiting from hard rock mining states as well. While all this has been going on, we have been expanding our mining operations in the process plant, which is now operating with throughput rates that are 50% higher than the nameplate capacity.

We have the right leadership and team in place to drive further improvements and advance the continued expansion of the operations.

As we mentioned, we expect continued improvement for the operation, particularly on the mining front, where productivity significantly improved over the course of year last year and expect to further improve as this year progresses. Unit costs are also expected to decrease as well.

Moving on to Slide 17 in Macraes. Macraes continues to be the mine that keeps on giving, with consistent positive performance and cash flows. There is plenty of opportunity to convert the large resource base to reserves and extend the mine life for a low capital investment. For 2020, Macraes is expected to produce a similar amount of gold to 2019 while costs are steady. We will mine a lot of material as we do normally at Macraes, however, we will do so with a lower strip ratio this year of approximately 7.5:1. The mining operations will be supported by another new 3,600 Hitachi excavator, which is now in service.

The Golden Point underground study is advancing well, and we expect to complete it in the second half of the year. Our objective with Golden Point underground is to replace the Frasers Underground. And this, together with additional open-pit opportunities, form the basis for a potential mine life extension. I would like to point out that the resource at Golden Point underground, the new discovery following initial drilling at other Round Hill project.

With drill results better than expected, we have decoupled the underground portion of the Golden Point from the Round Hill project. The Round Hill project remains as an option for us. However, this is an end-of-mine-life opportunity. In the meantime, we are advancing several open pits, including new stages of Coronation and Coronation North, [Graben] phase 1, [Deep Den] and Innes Mills. We will also be updating NI 43-101 for Macraes in 2020.

Moving on to Slide 18 in Waihi. We are transitioning from Correnso to the Martha Underground. We will complete mining of the main veins from Correnso this quarter and produce approximately 11,000 to 12,000 ounces of gold. We will continue mining the narrow veins from the underground, which we will stockpile ahead of batch processing in the fourth quarter. And in the fourth quarter, we expect to produce an additional 7,000 to 8,000 ounces of gold. The processing plant will be shut down after the first quarter, then restarted in the fourth quarter before we shut it down again ahead of processing from the Martha Underground in the second quarter of 2021.

The greatest capital at Waihi for 2020 is predominantly for the development of the Martha Underground. It also includes approximately $5 million to $7 million on project overheads, with the reminder on underground development, while some of the capital is for some plant modifications during the downtime. The Waihi District Study, which is expected in the second quarter of this year, will outline additional details associated with the development of the Martha Underground.

On to the next slide, Slide 19. The development of Martha Underground will ramp up over the course of the year from approximately 1,300 meters of development this quarter to a steady-state development rate of between 2,600 and 2,900 meters a quarter by the third quarter of this year. We have completed the ventilation shaft between the 2 drill drives and 830 meters of development in the fourth quarter of last year.

The image you see here on your screen is what Martha is expected to look like in 3 years' time. As I just mentioned, the Waihi District Study will have detailed information on the development of Martha Underground, the capital and operating costs as well as the ramp-up profile.

Just last week, we announced the updated Martha Underground resource. We reported an overall increase of 440,000 ounces of gold from the previous update in March 2019. We increased indicated resources by 150% year-on-year to 824,000 ounces of gold, while grades increased in both categories.

Back in 2017, we told the market that we had a new project called Martha, where through historical data and some drill holes, we believe there was mineralization that could underpin a certainty of mine life. Fast forward to today, we have a growing resource, a permitted mine, construction is well underway, and we are working towards initial targeted mine life of 10 years. Exploration drilling will continue in the Martha Underground this year and for many years to come. Our focus for this drilling is mainly on resource definition drilling. However, we have an exploration target of approximately 6 million to 8 million tonnes, grading [4 to 6] grams per tonne, which we will look to convert into resources over the coming years. This exploration target is incremental to the resources we currently have on our books.

Moving on to Slide 20 in the Waihi District Study. Waihi is more than just the Martha Underground, and the Waihi District Study is well underway. As we've said, the study should be completed in the second quarter of 2020. The main components of the study are the Martha Underground and our game-changing discovery at WKP. Both are underground mines and high-grade, particularly at WKP, where last March, we announced an initial resource of 234,000 ounces of gold in the indicated category and 401,000 ounces of gold in the inferred category. The Waihi District Study will be a preliminary economic assessment of PEA, and our intention is to highlight the future of the Waihi operation while providing high levels of detail on numerous parameters, such as production rates, operating and capital costs, mine plans and designs. The study will include resources beyond what we have just reported for the Martha Underground and WKP. However, there will be important [time to] draw a line in the sand, and what we have for resources from the district will be used for the [star performers]. This point is particularly important when we're considering the potential of the WKP targets. It's still a relatively new discovery with only 25,000 meters drilled since the end of 2017. We expect the resource at both the Martha Underground and WKP to grow, especially at WKP where we have only just begun. There is a lot more drilling to do, and we expect exploration to continue well into the mine lives of both Martha Underground and WKP.

I will now turn it over to Mick to wrap up the formal presentation. Thank you.

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Michael Francis Wilkes, OceanaGold Corporation - President, CEO, MD & Director [6]

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Thanks, Scott -- Michael and Scott. As you've been hearing, we have several opportunities we are focused on to achieve our objective of being one of the best gold mining companies in the industry. Our top priority is to resume operations at Didipio. It is an important asset to our business, and we want to deliver on our commitments to our host communities. We will continue to work constructively with all stakeholders towards the renewal of the FTAA and reestablish the best operation in the Philippines.

We have several exciting opportunities that are designed to deliver significant long-term value to shareholders. The Waihi district represents the largest value-creating opportunities we have in our portfolio. The market ascribes very little value to the Waihi operation despite successful resource expansion and project development that now underpin the 10-year mine life. And as the Waihi resource continues to grow, we see more value being ascribed to this asset in this Tier 1 jurisdiction, especially at WKP, which is an exciting opportunity and one that we're advancing as quickly as we can.

The Haile expansion continues to advance well, and we are feeling good about the progress of the operation, which is shaping up to be a robust, long-life mine again in a Tier 1 jurisdiction. Golden Point is another exciting opportunity, which is currently being studied and could add further mine life to our Macraes operation.

I'll now turn it over to Sam.

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Sam Pazuki, OceanaGold Corporation - VP of IR [7]

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Thank you, Mick. That concludes the formal presentation segment of the webcast. We will now take some questions over the phone, but you can also ask questions or post questions in the webcast site on your computer screen.

I will now turn it over to the moderator to facilitate the Q&A session.

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Questions and Answers

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Operator [1]

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(Operator Instructions) And your first question will be from Reg Spencer at Canaccord.

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Reg Spencer, Canaccord Genuity Corp., Research Division - Mining Analyst [2]

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Just a question on Didipio. Like the language around maintaining that state of operational readiness seems to have softened a little bit such that it appears that you may be considering care and maintenance. At what point, given that you're spending $2 million a quarter at the minute -- sorry, $10 million a quarter at the minute, at what point do you make that decision on care and maintenance?

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Michael Francis Wilkes, OceanaGold Corporation - President, CEO, MD & Director [3]

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Well, Reg, thanks for the question. We are focused on the restart of operations at Didipio, and the completion of the renewal remains our primary objective. We have made progress on the renewal in the quarter, which included continued positive engagement with regulators, and ultimately, the MGB and DENR, endorsing the renewal back to the OP, the Office of the President, in December. We've also seen positive steps with regard to the local blockade, including the authorization by the Office of the President to allow fuel into the site, and the Department of Interior Local Government orders, which have been issued to the Nueva Vizcaya government regarding the removal of the checkpoint. So we're encouraged by those various things.

However, time is marching on, and we are concerned about the cost that we're incurring to maintain the mine in a state of operational readiness, which we can't do forever. We can't do that indefinitely. And the impact of our -- on our workforce and the host communities is a key consideration in that decision.

So that's pretty much where we're at. We'll take into consideration all of those things. As was said in the presentation, if we do go into care and maintenance there is a significant a period to ramp-up, get back into operation, so we don't take any of these decisions lightly.

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Reg Spencer, Canaccord Genuity Corp., Research Division - Mining Analyst [4]

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And just the comment about getting some fuel into sites, you've obviously got approvals and permission to do that. Would that include, or may that include the ability to truck out some of the concentrates you have there just to get a little bit of cash flow out of the asset? Is that being contemplated?

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Michael Francis Wilkes, OceanaGold Corporation - President, CEO, MD & Director [5]

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We've obviously requested for that from the government. And we -- those requests is sitting with the DENR, and we're continuing those discussions. The letter from the Office of the President authorizing the fuel to leave site was specifically related to the fuel.

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Operator [6]

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Next question will be from Chris Thompson at PI Financial.

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Edited Transcript of OGC.AX earnings conference call or presentation 20-Feb-20 9:30pm GMT - Yahoo Finance

The military wants to experiment with commercial satellites from OneWeb and SpaceXs Starlink mega-constellations to keep war fighters connected in the Arctic, but it will need extra funding to do so.

Those companies aim to provide internet access via proliferated constellations made up of thousands of small satellites in low earth orbit. The military has been keen on leveraging this growing commercial capability, and the Air Force has awarded contracts to test how the satellite broadband service can be used by war fighters.

Now the commander of the United States Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command is expressing interest in using these commercial space internet services to provide communications in the polar regions, where satellite communications have traditionally been more limited. Gen. Thomas OShaughnessy is seeking $130 million for the effort, which he has listed as his number one unfunded priority for fiscal year 2021.

In a Feb. 11 letter to Congressional defense committees, OShaughnessy explained the money will be used for polar communications experiments and the fielding of prototype terminals capable of utilizing Starlink and OneWeb satellites. Additionally, the commander expressed hope that these experiments will incentivize further commercial investments in satellite communications and internet in the Arctic.

Full coverage will require an additional $110 million in fiscal year 2022, the document notes.

OneWeb leaders have said they expect to have 24 hour coverage in the Arctic by early 2021.

The request for polar communications funding was one of four unfunded priorities the commander sent to Congress. That funding is focused on my most pressing needs of increasing our domain awareness and establishing a layered homeland defense architecture.

The full list includes $20 million for a sentry radar, $5 million for Persistent Elevated Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance and $31 million for the COBRA Dane Service Life Extension Program.

Sentry radars are capable of mid-range detection, tracking and positive identification of low radar cross-section targets, including cruise missiles and drones, and the commander wants it to provide point defense of critical infrastructure and force deployment areas. Meanwhile, the $5 million for Persistent Elevated ISR will be used to develop and prototype a radar capability for point defense locations within the continental United States.

COBRA Dane is a phased array radar based in Alaska that was initially deployed in 1977. The radar has since been updated and integrated into the Ballistic Missile Defense System, although it continues to provide intelligence and space situational awareness. Due to delays in bringing replacement radars in Hawaii and the Pacific online, COBRA Dane will need to continue operations past the end of its expected service life in 2030. The commander is seeking $31 million to replace the transmitter group, travelling wave tubes and a mainframe computer.

Read the rest here:
Will SpaceX and OneWeb help the military stay connected in the Arctic? - C4ISRNet

The false alarm earlier this year at Ontarios Pickering nuclear power plant, and the subsequent revelation that Doug Fords Conservative government intends to further extend the life of the already aged plant, has put the issue of the governments approach to energy and environmental matters back on the political agenda.

The news that the costs of keeping electricity rates in Ontario artificially low have ballooned to $5.6 billion a year has further reinforced the need for a serious reconsideration of the provinces approach to energy matters.

Ontario currently has a surplus of electricity. That will change significantly over the next few years. The Pickering plant east of Toronto will be retired by 2024. Multiple reactors at the Bruce and Darlington nuclear facilities will be taken out of service for refurbishment between now and the early 2030s.

The provinces approach to making up these shortfalls seems likely to rely heavily on the large approximately 10,000 megawatts fleet of natural gas-fired generating facilities constructed since the early 2000s. The result could be the erosion of a significant (30 to 40 per cent) portion of the reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases and smog precursors obtained through the phaseout of coal-fired generation, completed in 2014.

The ongoing life extension of the Pickering nuclear facility its now operating beyond end-of-life after its original operating licence expired in August 2018 raises further questions about whether there are different, safer and more sustainable paths available to the province.

A recent study completed for the Ontario Independent Electricity System Operator suggested that future electricity demand could be reduced by 25 per cent, and natural gas consumption reduced by 31 per cent, over the next 20 years through efficiency measures. Other analyses suggest that potential savings could be substantially greater.

Energy-efficiency initiatives can encompass upgrading or replacing buildings and energy-hogging appliances with more efficient versions, behaviour changes, self-generation through actions like the installation of rooftop solar panels and better managing the timing of energy consumption.

Energy-efficiency initiatives are consistently identified as the lowest impact and most cost-effective means of meeting energy needs, while strengthening the resiliency of energy systems.

Energy-efficiency improvements could reduce the need to run natural gas-fired generation, and allow for an earlier retirement of the Pickering plant.

Energy-efficiency gains, particularly those that help to reduce the need for electricity during periods of high demand, could also play a significant role in making the best use of Ontarios substantial renewable energy resources (4,500 megawatt wind and 450 megawatt solar photovoltaic, or PV) that were added to the provinces electricity system between 2005 and 2018.

Read more: Ontario can phase out nuclear and avoid increased carbon emissions

Until last year, the province had a relatively comprehensive strategy of electricity energy efficiency. But the 2014-20 Conservation First framework was, with a few exceptions, terminated by the Ford government in March 2019 as part of its determination to reduce electricity costs in the short term.

While largely effective, Conservation First suffered from significant gaps in terms of overall program co-ordination.

The lack of integration with natural gas conservation initiatives was consistently identified as a major shortfall. The use of natural gas to heat buildings is widely identified as one of two key areas of GHG emission growth in Ontario, the other being transportation. The Ford governments December 2018 Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan made reference to a major expansion of natural gas conservation targets. But theres been no follow-up since.

The existing arrangements around natural gas conservation have survived so far, and are generally regarded as successful. But far more ambitious targets are needed to significantly affect the provinces greenhouse gas emissions.

Ontario seems to have abandoned energy efficiency as an element of its energy and climate change plans. Other provinces, including British Columbia, Qubec and Nova Scotia, as well as many U.S. states, despite disruptions, have continued to move forward with comprehensive energy-efficiency strategies. Even Jason Kenneys Alberta has stayed on course, for now.

There are several major steps Ontario could take to get back on track. The province should start by establishing a new provincial agency call it Energy Efficiency Ontario with a mandate to develop a comprehensive, integrative, cost-effective energy-efficiency strategy for Ontario.

An important step would be to re-engage municipally owned local electricity distribution companies that played a significant and largely successful role in Conservation First before it was terminated by the Ford government.

Enbridge could continue to deliver enhanced conservation initiatives to natural gas consumers. At the same time, electricity and natural gas conservation needs to be better integrated into a single service so that customers dont have to deal with multiple utilities and programs.

The most stable and successful funding model for energy-efficiency initiatives in North America is to embed costs in electricity and natural gas rates. This should be the case in Ontario as well.

The short-term savings to consumers from the Ford governments removal of energy-efficiency costs from electricity charges amounted to less than $10 per person per year. In contrast, the long-term benefits in terms of reduced electricity costs for consumers were estimated in the range of $25 per person per year according to the Ontario Environmentalism Commissioners 2019 report.

Enbridge and the provinces electricity system operator should follow the model of leading jurisdictions like California. They should be required to show their commitment to cost-effective and achievable energy-efficiency opportunities as a condition of rate and capital investment approval by the Ontario Energy Board on an ongoing basis.

The situation in Ontario is complicated by the lack of any meaningful overall energy planning framework, particularly with respect to electricity. That point was highlighted again by the governments unexpected and unexamined decision to further extend the life of the Pickering nuclear plant.

An energy-efficiency strategy that ensures Ontario pursues its lowest-risk and lowest-cost options first would be a good place to start.

Original post:
Energy conservation needs to take centre stage in Ontario - The Conversation CA

Teaming up with Welding Research Institute, the Indian Institute of Metals - Tiruchi Chapter, on Monday, oriented participants of E-LIFE 2020, a workshop on Engineering and Life Extension Aspects of Boilers, on the way forward to address challenges in operating ultra-super critical power boilers, in the areas of stricter environmental norms, green house gas effects, tariff, and disposal of wastes.

Resource persons comprising senior officials of BHEL engaged participants comprising users, original equipment manufacturers, consultants, faculty, researchers and students in sessions on mechanical design of power boilers, thermal design of surfaces for pressure parts in power boilers, atmospheric fluidised bed combustion, circulating fluidised-bed combustion technology, and computational fluid dynamics.

R. Easwaran, former Chairman, IIM-TRY inaugurated the programme in the presence of T.A. Daniel Sahayaraj, Chairman.

The focus of the second day programme on Tuesday will be on water chemistry and life extension in boilers, N. Rajasekaran, Vice-Chairman, IIM, Tiruchi Chapter, and Deputy General Manager, BHEL, Tiruchi, said.

In life extension programme, the participants will be apprised about the methodology of replacing pressure parts that are subjected to corrosion and erosion, to extend the life of the power plant for another 15 years, the organisers said.

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Emphasis on extending life of boilers - The Hindu

Klada is the largest gold mine in Turkey. (Image courtesy of Eldorado Gold.)

Following last weeks release of year-end results and five-year guidance fromEldorado Gold (TSE: ELD), the intermediate-producers stock soared over 30% in one day and breached eight-year highs.

Eldorado also announced a 15-year mine life at its Kisladag open pit operation in Turkey after completing long-cycle heap leach tests and replacing the tertiary crushing circuit with a high-pressure grinding roll (HPGR) circuit.

Kisladag has been a cornerstone asset of Eldorado for over a decade, producing over three million ounces of gold and generating significant value for all stakeholders during that period, George Burns, the companys president and CEO said in a release.

Following the resumption of full operations last spring, and the significant work and testing undertaken by the Eldorado team over the past 18 months, we are pleased to announce a mine life extension at Kisladag that puts this asset back in the core of our portfolio.

This year, the company expects to produce 520,000 ounces to 550,000 ounces

This year, the company expects to produce 520,000 ounces to 550,000 ounces at AISCs of $850 to $950 per ounce. Over the next five years, it anticipates production from its four operating mines to average over 450,000 ounces.

Last year, the Eldorados gold output was at 395,331 ounces at AISCs of $1,034 per ounce with $150.6 million in cash flow generated from operating activities, before changes in working capital.

Increased leach time with HPGR appears to increase heap leach recoveries at Kisladag to 56% with an updated average annual gold production expected at 160,000 ounces at AISCs of $800 to $850 per ounce.

Over the next five years, Kisladag and the underground Lamaque mine in Quebec, which declared commercial production last March, appear to be the largest gold contributors.

Eldorado also operates the underground Efemcukuru mine in western Turkey and the Olympias gold-silver-lead-zinc mine in northern Greece.

In addition to its gold-producing operations, in Greece, Eldorado holds the Skouries and Perama Hill projects which are currently on care and maintenance: Skouries was placed on care and maintenance at the end of 2018 due to ongoing permitting delays.

In January, Eldorado announcedthe discovery of the Ormaque zone at its Lamaque operation.

(This story first appeared at the Canadian Mining Journal)

View post:
Eldorado revamps Kisladag and expects over 450000 ounces annually - MINING.com

Dr Sahibzada, the Director of Islamic Center and Imam of the Mosque of Grand Rapids, responds:

God has Absolute Knowledge and Absolute Authority of power over everything. He has created life and death to determine who does righteous deeds. No one knows lifes age, where, when someone is going to die and how. All is in Gods hands. When death comes it will never be delayed for a fraction of moment.

Humans think that they are prolonging life, but it is fixed term and God has its knowledge. No one can save oneself from death and there is no cure for death. Every soul will taste death. Final moment of humans life is determined.

Humans perceive they can prolong life, but it is not in their hands. Life must traverse certain passage to its end in each individual case. God has determined end time and He is the only authority to prolong or shorten it.

God has bestowed limited options to humankind to put all efforts to cure lifes intricacies in accordance to capacity level. Results will be at par with efforts one has put in, but the end time approaches and all efforts also come to an end.

The Reverend Colleen Squires, minister atAll Souls Community Church of West Michigan, a Unitarian Universalist Congregation, responds:

Medicine seems to be always advancing the cutting edge, and it is often outpacing religious, ethical and moral beliefs.Unitarian Universalists believe all medical decisions are best made between the patient and their doctor.We do not believe in prolonging life at all cost and I think most of us would reject extraordinary measures merely to keep someone alive.We value the quality of life and we value our right to make our own end of life decisions.

Fred Stella, the Pracharak (Outreach Minister) for the West Michigan Hindu Temple, responds:

Hinduism rejects the idea of a human-like judge who makes seemingly arbitrary decisions as to things such as our death. Our life span is decided by any number of factors, most of them karmic. By that, I mean, for the most part, our past actions in this lifetime. This includes our diet, exercise habits, connection to support systems, education, wealth, etc. Obviously, there are factors that are beyond our control such as genetics, environmental pollution, civil strife, war, and so forth. When we change our present actions we can change our future. Therefore, it is not a stretch to say that a person who seems to be close to death from a heart attack might alter that outcome by having surgery. This not much different from a person whose life might be in danger due to obesity starting to moderate his or her diet and adding physical activity to the daily routine. By doing so life may be extended.

To be clear, I am not advocating life extension for its own sake. These are evaluations that must be judiciously made by individuals and their families. In these times, when medical machinery can keep a person alive long after they have lost any semblance of their former life, I consider it a moral imperative for each adult to make their wishes known well in advance of the need for any decision.

Rev. Ray Lanning, a retired minister of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, responds:

God has indeed decreed for every one of us when and how we shall die: It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). But such things are not known to us. That means that we need to consult Gods Word and pray for guidance when we address end of life questions, such as the use of heroic or extraordinary measures to prolong the life of our bodies.

Those who are prepared to die and appear before the judgment seat of Christ have no reason to cling to this earthly life at all costs. The Apostle Paul declared, For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21). He felt himself in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you(v. 23, 24), that is, the Christians whom he had led to faith by his preaching. He was convinced that God still had work for him to do on earth.

So what do you have to gain by these extraordinary measures? What purpose will it serve to prolong your days on earth? Nothing in Gods Word requires or forbids you to use such means. What matters most is to live and die as a Christian, as one reconciled to God by the death of His Son, and an heir to everlasting life.

This column answers questions of Ethics and Religion by submitting them to a multi-faith panel of spiritual leaders in the Grand Rapids area. Wed love to hear about the ordinary ethical questions that come up in the course of your day as well as any questions of religion that youve wondered about. Tell us how you resolved an ethical dilemma and see how members of the Ethics and Religion Talk panel would have handled the same situation. Please send your questions to[emailprotected].

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Ethics and Religion Talk: Does Medical Intervention Subvert God's Will? - The Rapidian

The Global Antioxidant Supplement Market report study includes an elaborative summary of the Antioxidant Supplement market that provides in-depth knowledge of various different segmentations. Antioxidant Supplement Market Research Report presents a detailed analysis based on the thorough research of the overall market, particularly on questions that border on the market size, growth scenario, potential opportunities, operation landscape, trend analysis, and competitive analysis of Antioxidant Supplement Market. The information includes the company profile, annual turnover, the types of products and services they provide, income generation, which provide direction to businesses to take important steps. Antioxidant Supplement delivers pin point analysis of varying competition dynamics and keeps ahead of Antioxidant Supplement competitors such as NOW, Vibrant Health, AST R-ALA, GNC, Jarrow Formulas, Life Extension.

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1.USA2.Europe3.Japan4.China5.India6.Southeast Asia

furthermore, the aspect that triggers and restricts the growth of the global Antioxidant Supplement industry is specified and simplify in depth in this research study. It helps experts in taking significant business choices to publicize their business. The study additionally examines regions having potentialities for future market development. It also gives data about developing markets, beneficial markets, static markets, declining markets, soaked markets or develop advertises along with development benefits.

1. The Outlook of the Antioxidant Supplement Industry2. Global Market Competition Landscape3. Global Antioxidant Supplement Market share4. Supply Chain Analysis5. Company Profiles6. Globalization & Trade7. Distributors and Customers8. Import, Export, Consumption and Consumption Value by Major Countries9. Global Antioxidant Supplement Market Forecast to 202410. Key success factors and Market Overview

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Read More Post:http://www.marketsnresearch.com/global-oilfield-stimulation-chemicals-market-report-2018-industry.html

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Global Antioxidant Supplement Market Analysis 2020 2025 With Top Companies of Industry like NOW, Vibrant Health, AST R-ALA, GNC, Jarrow Formulas -...

Looking to stem losses driven by high-cost operations, New Gold (TSX: NGD; NYSE-AM: NGD) recently tabled revamped life-of-mine plans for its Rainy River and New Afton mines focused on improving the bottom line and boosting profitability.

The mine plan update was released along with the companys 2019 results that showed a US$74 million loss for the year, or 12 per share. Although New Gold hit its guidance with annual consolidated production of 486,141 gold-equivalent oz. (322,557 oz. gold, 596,452 oz. silver and 79.4 million lb. copper, its all-in-sustaining-costs (AISCs) of US$1,310 per oz. gold-equivalent for the year and US$1,862 per oz. gold-equivalent in the fourth quarter highlights the need to trim costs.

New Gold says its new life-of-mine plan is roughly a year in the making and focuses on mining method optimizations, evaluation of alternate mining scenarios, and reining in capital requirements to boost profitability and deliver free cash flow.

The companys new vision for its Rainy River gold mine, located near Fort Frances in northwestern Ontario, sees a smaller pit shell for open-pit operations using a US$1,275 per oz. gold price and a boost in the mineral reserve cut-off grade to between 0.46 gram gold-equivalent per tonne to 0.49 gram gold-equivalent per tonne (up from the previous 0.30 gram gold-equivalent per tonne cut-off grade). The revised plan would mine open-pit ore at a lower strip ratio of 2.53:1 (waste:ore) over a four-year mine life through to 2024, with full depletion of the pit by early 2025.

Lower-grade open pit ore (0.30 gram gold-equivalent per tonne to 0.46 gram gold-equivalent per tonne) mined during the pits operational life would be stockpiled to supplement mill feed once the mine transitions to underground operations.

Pit operations at New Golds Rainy River gold mine northwestern Ontario. Credit: New Gold.

Over its new open-pit operational life, New Gold forecasts mining 67.5 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 0.91 gram gold per tonne at Rainy River.

Underground operations at Rainy River are expected to come online in 2022, and would ramp-up to peak production from 2025 to 2027. The underground mine plan targets zones that can deliver optimal profitability at a gold price of US$1,275 per oz. and would use four in-pit portals and one portal outside the pit to exploit the ore blocks. Mining would cease in 2028, although the company says there are lower grade zones that could potentially support a mine life extension in a higher gold price environment. Over its planned underground mine life, an estimated 4.1 million tonnes of ore averaging 4.17 grams gold per tonne would be extracted.

Average annual production from Rainy River under the new plan is forecast at 289,000 oz. gold equivalent at a new life-of-mine average head grade of 1.06 grams gold per tonne and an 89% recovery rate. AISCs are forecast at US$967 per oz. gold-equivalent over the eight-year mine life. Total proven and probable reserves are tabled at 2.6 million contained oz. gold and 6.3 million contained oz. silver in 77.6 million tonnes grading 1.06 grams gold per tonne and 2.5 grams per tonne silver.

The company says it expects free cash flow generation at Rainy River beginning in the fourth quarter of this year, and over its new forecast mine life it anticipates total free cash flow of US$550 million at US$1,300 per oz. gold, or more than US$1 billion at a spot gold price assumption of US$1,550 per ounce gold.

Raymond James mining analyst Farooq Hamed highlighted the new Rainy River life-of-mine plan as a shorter life, lower-cost ounces scenario, with four years trimmed from the mine life with less production; however, that is offset by lower operating costs and significantly lower capital expenditures. In a research note, the analyst maintained his market perform rating for the company and has a $1.25 target price on the stock.

Scotiabank analyst Trevor Turnbull viewed the revised plan negatively. The new mine plan at Rainy River significantly reduced the mine life, and near-term capital costs (2020-2024) actually increased 16% to US$589 million, he comments in a research note. He also expresses concern over reduced cash flow and debt servicing capacity with US$400 million of senior unsecured debt maturing in late 2022; however, he maintained his Sector Perform rating on the stock and raised his one-year target price to US$1.00 from US75.

New Golds other operation, the New Afton underground gold-copper mine located on the outskirts of Kamloops in south-central British Colombia, also underwent a review over the past year looking to extend its life out to 2030.

The New Afton mine was historically mined by Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.B; NYSE: TCK) as the Afton open pit from 1978 to 1997, when operations ceased due to economic constraints in deepening the pit to exploit the deeper mineralization. New Gold acquired the project in 2005 and developed an exploration ramp near the pit floor to extract a bulk sample and subsequently developed an underground mine plan utilizing block caving to extract the ore. The underground mine commenced operation in mid-2012. With an average production rate of 16,000 tonnes per day, it is touted by the company as the largest daily tonnage underground hard rock mine in Canada.

The companys plan would bring New Aftons deeper and higher-grade C zone (situated at a depth of 800 metres to 1,200 metres) into development using a similar block caving method as utilized in the upper levels. Under the plan, development would commence this year and continue through 2024, with production beginning in the third quarter of 2024 and ramping up to full production from 2025 to 2029.

An operator using Sandviks AutoMine system to drive an LH410 in the New Afton mine. Credit: Sandvik.

In its news release announcing the mine plans revisions, Renaud Adams, New Golds president and CEO, said the company has an integrated mine plan that optimizes the self-funded development of New Aftons B3 and C zone that could deliver significant free cash flow of more than US$1 billion over the life of mine.

New Gold forecasts total capital for the life-of-mine (US$175 million and US$460 million in sustaining and non-sustaining capital, respectively) is anticipated to remain high from 2020 to 2023, primarily due to the C zone, and decrease significantly from 2024 to 2026, with minimal capital over the balance of the mine life.

The New Afton updated mine plan will also incorporate enhanced tailings engineering to increase the stability of the current and historical tailings, with in-pit thickened tailings deposition planned for the C zone ore portion.

Annual production from New Afton is forecast at 260,000 oz. gold-equivalent over the next decade under the new plan at life-of-mine average head grades of 0.68 gram gold per tonne with an 86% recovery rate and 0.77% copper with an 89% recovery rate. AISCs are expected to come in at US$681 per oz. gold equivalent (based on US$1,300 per oz. gold, US$16 per oz. silver and US$3 per lb copper) over the 10-year mine life. Total proven and probable reserves are 1 million contained oz. gold, 2.8 million contained oz. silver and 802 million lb. copper in 77.6 million tonnes grading 0.66 gram gold per tonne, 1.9 grams silver per tonne and 0.77% copper.

Following the release of its annual financial results and the new life-of-mine plans, shares in New Gold dropped as much as 16% to the 98 level, an almost eight-month low. At press time, the shares recovered slightly to $1.07 giving the company a $723 million market capitalization based on its 676 million common shares outstanding.

As of year-end 2019, New Gold had a cash position of US$83 million.

More here:
New Gold updates Rainy River and New Afton mine plans - The Northern Miner

VANCOUVER Feb 23, 2020 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of Eldorado Gold Corp earnings conference call or presentation Friday, February 21, 2020 at 4:30:00pm GMT

* Tanya M. Jakusconek

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to the Eldorado Gold Corporation Fourth Quarter and 2019 Year-End Results Conference Call. (Operator Instructions)

I would now like to turn the conference over to Peter Lekich, Manager, Investor Relations. Go ahead, Mr. Lekich.

Thank you, operator, and thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for taking the time to dial into our conference call today. With me in Vancouver this morning are George Burns, President and CEO; Phil Yee, Executive Vice President and CFO; Joe Dick, Executive Vice President and COO; Paul Skayman, Special Adviser to the COO; and Jason Cho, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer.

Our release yesterday details our 2019 fourth quarter and year-end financial and operating results. This should be read in conjunction with our fourth quarter and year-end financial statements and management's discussion and analysis, both of which are available on our website. They have also been filed on SEDAR and EDGAR. All dollar figures discussed today are in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise stated. We will be speaking to the slides that accompany this webcast. You can download a copy of these slides from our website.

Before we begin, I would like to remind you that any projections included in our discussion today are likely to involve risks, which are detailed in our 2018 AIF and in the cautionary note on Slide 1. I will now turn the call over to George.

Thanks, Peter, and good morning, everyone. It's fantastic to see the response to our release this morning. Here is the format for today's call. I'll give an overview of the highlights along with some comments, then I'll pass it over to Phil to go through the financials. Paul will follow by reviewing operational performance, and Joe will say a few words on 2020 plans. Then we'll open it up for questions.

Before we get into things, I want to say a warm welcome to Joe, our new COO. Joe has been with us for a few months and has had the opportunity to spend some time at our sites. He joins us from Newmont, where he was SVP for Latin America. He also has experience with Barrick and Rio Tinto. Welcome, Joe.

Moving on to the highlights on the next slide. It was another solid quarter for -- both operationally and financially. We produced a record 118,955 ounces of gold, our highest quarterly production in nearly 4 years. This was a result of increased production at Lamaque and Kisladag. Consolidated annual gold production came in on plan, and we ended the year with over 395,000 ounces, our highest total production in 3 years. Cash operating cost remained steady.

Looking back, 2019 was a pivotal year in Eldorado's 25-year history. We put our first Canadian mine into commercial production, we restructured the balance sheet and reduced our total debt by USD 100 million, and we received long-awaited permits in Greece. On top of these accomplishments, our cornerstone asset, Kisladag, is now back on track. We are confident that the results of recent test support and extended mine life of 15 years.

I'm proud of the benefit that will come to local communities and the Greeks. Kisladag will once again provide long-term value for Eldorado stakeholders. Over to Greece, our team is working with ministry officials to advance our investment. To recap, we have received the Skouries construction permits that held us up since 2017.

However, an updated investment agreement and permits for dry stack tailings are essential for the advancement of the investment and restart of the project. The revised investment agreement would not only provide a stable platform irrespective of future governing parties, it would also help in demonstrating Greece's commitment to working with foreign investors in order to attract capital needed to grow its economy.

Just to remind everyone, we view Skouries as a world-class asset that will create approximately 1,000 well-paying jobs over its current 23-year mine life and generate significant tax and export revenues for the benefit of local communities and the Greek state. Before I hand it over, you may have noticed that our logo is slightly different throughout this presentation. This refreshed logo is reflective of the evolution of our business and the new path forward.

The new green color highlights the company's continuing commitment to put sustainability at the core of our business. As evidence of this, we are currently building a global sustainability management system that outlines the common set of performance standards by which we will operate. This will allow us to simplify our existing systems through harmonizing the way we do things. It will also improve efficiencies and consistencies across our business that will drive productivity. That's it for me. Over to you, Phil.

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Philip Chow Yee, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Executive VP & CFO [4]

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Thank you, George. Good morning, everyone. Starting on Slide 4, we provide an overview of Eldorado Gold's financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2019. Eldorado generated $191.9 million in total metal revenue in the fourth quarter. This includes $176.1 million in gold revenue and is an increase of 107% over the comparative quarter in 2018. The increase resulted from higher gold sales volumes of 118,900 ounces versus 58,860 in Q4 of 2018 and a higher realized average gold price in the fourth quarter of $1,475 an ounce versus $1,245 per ounce in Q4 of 2018.

For the full year 2019, Eldorado generated total metal revenue of $617.8 million, of which $530.9 million was gold revenue. This represents a 35% increase over 2018 and also resulted from higher gold sales volumes and a higher average gold price in 2019. Net earnings to shareholders in the fourth quarter was $91.2 million or $0.57 per share compared to a net loss to shareholders of $218.2 million or $1.38 loss per share in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Net earnings in the fourth quarter reflect an impairment reversal of $85.2 million or $68.2 million net of deferred tax for the Kisladag leach pad and related assets, reflecting the Kisladag mine life extension to 15 years. There was also an increase in depreciation in the fourth quarter, in line with increased sales volumes.

Net loss in the fourth quarter of 2018 included an impairment adjustment of $330.2 million or $247.7 million net of deferred tax, which is related to Olympias. For the full year of 2019, net earnings to shareholders was $80.6 million or $0.51 per share, reflecting essentially the same drivers as outlined for the fourth quarter. This represents a significant improvement over the full year 2018 net loss of $361.9 million or $2.28 loss per share.

Adjusted net earnings for the fourth quarter was $20.3 million or $0.13 per share, which was a significant improvement over the fourth quarter 2018 adjusted net loss of $18.9 million or $0.11 loss per share. In both periods, net earnings were adjusted primarily to remove the impairments and the impairment reversal.

For the full year 2019, adjusted net earnings were $5.6 million or $0.04 per share, adjusted to adjusted net loss of $28.6 million or $0.17 loss per share for 2018. The strong sales in the fourth quarter resulted in EBITDA of $158.7 million and adjusted EBITDA of $80.3 million, an improvement over the loss before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $327.9 million and adjusted EBITDA of $9 million in the fourth quarter of 2018.

For 2019, EBITDA amounted to $311.3 million, and adjusted EBITDA was $235.6 million. This is compared to a loss before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $361.8 million and adjusted EBITDA of $99.6 million for 2018. Again, adjustments were primarily the impairment items discussed earlier.

Fourth quarter also represented a third consecutive quarter of positive free cash flow after achieving commercial production at Lamaque at the end of March of 2019. Finance costs were $8 million in the fourth quarter and $45.3 million for the year compared to $5.6 million for the full year of 2018. The significant increase in 2019 over 2018 primarily reflects interest no longer capitalized, following the commencement of commercial operations at Lamaque in the second quarter of 2019 and the transfer of Skouries to care and maintenance at the end of 2018.

Income tax expense amounted to $39.8 million for 2019 compared to a tax recovery of $86.5 million in 2018. The tax expense in 2019 primarily relates to income tax on operations in Turkey and mining duties for Lamaque. Deferred tax recoveries in 2019, relating to fixed asset movements, currency movements and a corporate tax rate reduction in Greece were almost fully offset by a $17 million deferred tax expense as a result of the impairment reversal for Kisladag. The tax recovery in 2018 primarily resulted from the impairment charges in that year.

Depreciation and amortization increased to $153.1 million in 2019 from $105.7 million in 2018. Reflecting the increase in sales volumes in 2019 as well as the commencement of commercial operations at Lamaque during the year.

Eldorado reported $64.2 million in net cash generated from operating activities in the fourth quarter and $165.8 million for the full year 2019. This was also a significant increase from the fourth quarter of 2018 of $4.9 million and $67.5 million for the full year 2018. We finished the year with approximately $366 million in available liquidity. Of this, $181 million was in cash, cash equivalents and term deposits as at December 31, 2019, and approximately $185 million remained available under the $250 million revolving credit facility, which remains undrawn. Approximately $65 million of this facility is allocated to secure certain reclamation obligations in connection with our operations.

I will now turn it over to Paul for a recap of operations.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Paul James Skayman, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Special Advisor to the COO [5]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks, Phil. I'd like to echo George's comments and welcome Joe onboard as well. Here's a quick summary of our quarterly and year-to-date operating results. As George mentioned, we produced 118,955 ounces of gold in the quarter, a cash operating cost of $621 per ounce sold. And all-in sustaining costs of $1,110 per ounce sold. This was more or less in line with expectations.

Similarly, production for the year was also in line with expectations. We produced 395,331 ounces at a cash cost of $608 per ounce, and an all-in sustaining cost of $1,034 per ounce. This was our highest total production rate in 3 years.

Looking forward, our 2020 production is expected to grow approximately 35%. Forecasting annual production of between 520,000 and 550,000 ounces of gold at cash cost of $550 to $600 per ounce and all-in sustaining cost of $850 to $950 per ounce in 2020. We expect lower all-in sustaining cost in 2019 actuals as production is expected to increase this year.

That's it for me, a short section this time around. Over to Joe.

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Joseph Dennis Dick, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Executive VP & COO [6]

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Thanks, Paul, and good morning, everyone. It's a pleasure to be part of the Eldorado team, especially at such an exciting time in our business.

I'm going to Slide 6, we'll get a look at our 5-year outlook. Full year production figures remain the same for 2020, as what you saw in January 2019. And as we've talked before, production will decrease in 2021 as we mine lower grade at Kisladag. What I want to highlight is our sustained annual gold production beyond 2020. This is a sizable improvement over what you saw last year. In addition to the mine life extension at Kisladag, we are forecasting a step-up in production at Lamaque to 150,000 ounces per year through accelerated development. This does require an expansion to the existing permit for triangle underground extraction rates. We are also forecasting an increase in production from Olympias, and we'll discuss that a bit further later in this call.

Post-2020, we are now forecasting an annual average of over 450,000 ounces of gold per year from our base operations, and our key development projects provide potential growth to this production profile.

Over to Kisladag on Slide 7. The headline at Kisladag is an average of 160,000 ounces of gold per year for 15 years. The project is self-funding and reestablishes Kisladag as a cornerstone of our company. As you may remember, the company announced in January 2019 that it would suspend work on the mill in favor of resuming mining, crushing and heap leaching. The company also announced that it would continue test work on deeper material at Kisladag to see how it responded to longer leach cycles with the aim of extending mine life.

Later in 2019, the company announced that given the test work to date, it did expect to extend the mine life at Kisladag.

Additionally, the company conducted a high-pressure grinding roll, or HPGR, test work on several bulk samples. These samples were then tested to see how they would perform under a 250-day leach cycle. The results of the test work indicate that a combination of HPGR and longer leach cycles will yield recoveries of approximately 56%. This test work now complete and coupled with extensive test work covering the remaining reserve, we have a comprehensive understanding of how the ore body will behave going forward.

As a result, we collectively are confident -- very confident in our new mine plan. A 43-101 compliant report confirming our new reserves of over 4 million ounces of gold will be published before the end of this quarter.

Looking at Slide 8. We have an outline showing the scale of the new pit booking to the north. The darker yellow is the existing pit mine to date, and the shaded yellow is the new reserve pit. This new pit contains 173 million tonnes of ore, resulting in a 15-year mine life.

Slide 9 takes us to Lamaque. Our guidance for Lamaque increases to approximately 150,000 ounces per year by 2022. We will achieve this by increasing our mining rates to roughly 2,200 tonnes per day, which is the current capacity of the Sigma Mill.

This expansion requires no incremental capital and it simply accelerates underground development. Eldorado will continue to study ways to optimize the triangle deposit. Initially, we will focus on the decline from triangle to the Sigma Mill. Following that, we will look at debottlenecking the mill and a long-term tailings solution to enable us to go beyond 2,200 tonnes per day.

With the recent discovery of the Ormaque zone and continued exploration success at Triangle, the company has deferred release of a PEA. We feel that incorporation of new information into the study will allow us to better scope the full potential of Lamaque.

On to Olympias at Slide 10. 2019 was disappointing. Olympias finished the year with lower production and higher costs than planned. However, we did establish a positive trend in the second half of the year by improving the underground development and backfill cycles. During 2020, we will continue to focus on development and include additional initiatives aimed at further enhancing our productivity. The guidance we have issued shows continued positive trend and shows we are expecting to achieve higher production at lower costs than 2019.

We expect continued progress beyond 2020, resulting in improved cost performance over time. We still have a ways to go at Olympias. But we are making progress, and we expect the necessary step change in productivities over the next 2 years. On that basis, our 5-year plan includes an expansion at Olympias to 650,000 tonnes per year. Further details on the expansion will be outlined in a technical study that will also be published by the end of this quarter. With that, I'll turn it back to George for closing remarks.

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George Raymond Burns, Eldorado Gold Corporation - President, CEO & Director [7]

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Thanks, Joe. Before wrapping up, I want to take a moment to thank our global teams for their collaboration and drive in 2019, particularly the Kisladag team for putting the mine back on track and Lamaque team for an excellent first year.

Together, we achieved multiple significant milestones, making it a pivotal year for Eldorado. I'm very proud that we delivered our highest annual production in 3 years, while maintaining steady operating costs. We expect this positive momentum to continue with 2020 production forecasted to grow to between 520,000 and 550,000 ounces. The expected increased cash flow will give us options to invest in our growth projects and pay down our debt. We will continue to put safety, sustainability and governance at the core of our business as we seek ever better ways to operate.

Thank you, everyone. I will now turn it over to the operator for questions.

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Questions and Answers

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Operator [1]

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(Operator Instructions) The first question comes from Mike Parkin with National Bank.

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Michael Parkin, National Bank Financial, Inc., Research Division - Mining Analyst [2]

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With the Olympias expansion study coming out, should we be looking for that largely to be the addition of the ball mill that you've spoken to in the past?

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Paul James Skayman, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Special Advisor to the COO [3]

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Yes, that's correct. There's some subtle changes elsewhere in the plant, but the major changes that addition of a ball mill.

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Michael Parkin, National Bank Financial, Inc., Research Division - Mining Analyst [4]

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So are we still thinking on CapEx somewhere around like $20 million, $25 million?

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Paul James Skayman, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Special Advisor to the COO [5]

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Yes, a little bit more than that, Mike, but not significant.

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Michael Parkin, National Bank Financial, Inc., Research Division - Mining Analyst [6]

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Okay. Where do you see OpEx per tonne on an overall basis, kind of trending as whatever percent drop from where it's kind of been or however you want to kind of communicate it with that expansion?

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Joseph Dennis Dick, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Executive VP & COO [7]

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I see that we've been looking in the plus 30% improvements in OpEx roughly and perhaps more.

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Paul James Skayman, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Special Advisor to the COO [8]

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I guess, you've got a double whammy. You're increasing your lead and zinc as well. So that makes a big difference to cash operating costs, yes.

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Michael Parkin, National Bank Financial, Inc., Research Division - Mining Analyst [9]

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Okay. And then with Kisladag, can you just give us an update on the fleet there? Is it owner operated? And if it is, what's the condition of it, now that you're looking at such a massive mine life extension there? Will there be a need to replace the fleet in the next few years?

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Joseph Dennis Dick, Eldorado Gold Corporation - Executive VP & COO [10]

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Read the original:
Edited Transcript of ELD.TO earnings conference call or presentation 21-Feb-20 4:30pm GMT - Yahoo Finance

Canadas Eldorado Gold has announced a 15-year mine life at Kisladag, in Turkey, to 2034, following the completion of long-cycle heap leach testwork and the replacement of the tertiary crushing circuit with a high-pressure grinding roll (HPGR) circuit.

The new mineral reserve for Kisladag includes proven and probable reserves of 173.2-million tonnes of ore at 0.72 g/t, containing four-million ounces of gold.

The mine is forecast to produce an average of 160000 oz/y at an average cash cost of $675/oz to $725/oz and an average all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $800/oz to $850/oz.

Kisladag has been the cornerstone asset of Eldorado for over a decade, producing over three-million ounces of gold and generating significant value for all stakeholders during that period. Following the resumption of full operations last spring, and the significant work and testing undertaken by the Eldorado team over the past 18 months, we are pleased to announce a mine life extension at Kisladag that puts this asset back in the core of our portfolio, said president and CEO George Burns.

Eldorado reported that the project self-funds all development capital for waste stripping and the HPGR circuit. The cost for the HPGRcircuit, about $35-million, is spread over 2020 and 2021, while the cost of capitalised waste stripping, about $260-million, is spread over the life of the project, with heavier stripping in the first several years.

Meanwhile, Eldorado said it would produce 520000 oz to 550000 oz of gold in 2020, a substantial increase ofon the 395331 oz produced in 2019.

Average cash operating costs are forecast to decline from $608/oz of gold sold in 2019, to $550/oz to $600/oz of gold sold in 2020. The AISC for 2020 is forecast to be $850/oz to $950/oz of gold sold, down on the $1033/oz of gold sold in 2019.

With the extension of Kisladags mine life and continued operations at Lamaque, in Canada, Efemcukuru, in Turkey, and Olympias, in Greece, Eldorado is forecasting five-year production from its four current operations to average over 450 000 oz/y. In addition to the updated Kisladag technical report, the company is in the process of updating technical reports for Olympias and Efemcukuru, which will be published by the end of the first quarter.

Read the original here:
Mine life extension puts Kisladag back on the map - Creamer Media's Mining Weekly

Space has been a straightforward business so far: launch it; turn it on; hope it works; avoid the stray piece of space junk; let it die. Now, a more complex space economy is on the horizon, with maintenance spacecraft, repair robots, garbage removal trucks and even orbital manufacturing depots.

Thisyear is set to see history made with the first ever servicing operation on an in-orbit satellite. Robotic orbital trouble-shooters, which are expected to pave the way for a new era of space robotics, will one day shuttle malfunctioning spacecraft back and forth, refuel them, perform basic repairs or serve as temporary propulsion and steering units.

Satellites are a crucial component of 21st-century technology infrastructure. Wedepend on them for weather forecasting and climate monitoring, telecoms, navigation and a plethora of scientific and emerging applications. Satellites are often costly to build and launch, and once in orbit, little can be done to upgrade, inspect or fix them. If all goes well, operators can get up to 20 years service from their assets. If unexpected problems occur, the investment might go to waste.

The first ever in-orbit servicing spacecraft, the Mission Extension Vehicle 1 (MEV-1), built by Space Logistics, a wholly owned subsidiary of American aerospace giant Northrup Grumman, is set to perform the first automated docking between two commercial satellites. Upon completing this manoeuvre, it willcommence the equally pioneering task of extending the life of an ageing telecommunications satellite of US operator Intelsat.

The demonstration will take place in the so-called graveyard orbit about 200km above the geostationary ring, an orbit at the altitude of 36,000km, where spacecraft appear suspended above a certain spot on Earth. Sought after by operators of meteorological and telecommunications satellites, the geostationary orbit is one of the busiest regions of space. To keep it tidy for future users, operators are obliged to move their spacecraft into the graveyard at the end of each mission.

This mission represents many industry firsts, Joe Anderson, vice president of business development and operations at Space Logistics, tells E&T. We are using many new technologies and because there are some concerns, we decided to perform the demonstration in the graveyard orbit.

MEV-1, which launched in mid-October 2019 from Russias cosmodrome Baikonur inKazakhstan, raises itself into the geostationary graveyard orbit from the so-called geostationary transfer orbit, where it has been left by the launcher, using its electric thrusters. In the graveyard orbit, the service vehicle will meet its client, Intelsats IS901. Intelsats operators have moved the craft into the graveyard orbit using its onboard propulsion system ahead of the demonstration.

IS901 is an 18-year-old veteran. Under normal circumstances, the satellite would soon reach the end of its life, but Intelsat hopes that MEV-1 could add at least five years to its mission. The servicing spacecraft, which will autonomously approach and attach itself to IS901, will first move the satellite into a new slot in the geostationary orbit and then use its thrusters to maintain its position and attitude for the duration of the mission. At the end of the five-year period, MEV-1 will push IS901 back to the graveyard orbit before disconnecting and moving on to another client.

Space Logistics, previously part of Orbital ATK, acquired by Northrop Grumman in 2018, spent ten years developing technologies for the mission at the companys Rendezvous, Proximity, Operations and Docking (RPOD) laboratory.

In this laboratory, we have a number of very large industrial robots that we are using as puppeteers for the mock-up of the MEV, says Anderson. We used that laboratory to develop prototypes and test our software algorithms and sensors that are used to do the rendezvous and docking.

Space Logistics reused some of the technologies developed by Orbital ATK originally for the Cygnus spacecraft, one of the cargo vehicles resupplying the International Space Station (ISS). Cygnus, however, doesnt dock autonomously but is captured by the stations robotic arm and berthed to the stations Harmony module. While the ISS has dedicated docking and berthing ports, MEV-1 will have to be able to attach to satellites that were not designed with orbital docking in mind.

The MEV does that by taking advantage of two features that are, according to Anderson, on 80 per cent of geostationary satellites currently in orbit the so-called liquid apogee engine and the launcher adapter ring.

Before the start of the manoeuvre, MEV-1 circles around the target a few times and inspects it with its visible, infrared and lidar sensors, Anderson explains. It then positions itself 500m behind the target and waits for a command from the ground control team to start the approach, which is very slow.

At the distance of one metre from the target, MEV-1 deploys a probe, which enters through the liquid apogee engine into the client satellite. Inside, the probe deploys its fingers in order not to slip out. MEV-1 pulls the probe back and the two satellites are brought together, with the launcher adapter ring on the client satellite pressed against three stanchions on the MEV.

We end up with a very simple push-pull tension where we are pulling at the centre of that liquid apogee engine and we are pushing against the launcher adaptor ring and thats what clasps the two vehicles together, says Anderson. From that point onward, the MEV takes over the attitude and orbit control of the combined vehicle stack.

As an idea, in-orbit servicing has been around for almost 20 years, according to Anderson. The technology, however, didnt make economic sense before. The cost was too high and the risks considerable. On top of that, operators would prefer to replace their ageing systems with modern, more efficient ones. However, the tide has turned, space has become more cluttered and cost-cutting became more of an interest. The idea of prolonging the life of existing satellites instead of building and launching new ones came to the fore.

Future developments

In-orbit servicing presents only the first step towards a future that resembles what once would have been science fiction. Robotic manufacturing in space and orbital assembly of spacecraft, too, is getting closer to reality. US company Made in Space is developing a space robot called Archinaut One that will enable manufacturing of large structures for space in space.

Made in Space received $73.7m of Nasa funding for the Archinaut pilot project, which is expected to fly to space in 2022.

Fitted with a cutting-edge space-qualified 3D printer and robotic manipulator arms, Archinaut will print, assemble and deploy its own operational solar array, which, the company says, will be five times more efficient than regular solar panels used on todays spacecraft.

In the future, such orbital robots could build various components for existing satellites such as super-powerful antennas, radar booms, extra-large solar panels and others. The robots could also assemble entire telescopes larger than those that are possible to launch from Earth. Larger telescopes mean greater advances in scientific understanding. The ability to manufacture in space means considerably lower cost since the cost of launch from Earth represents a large portion of the overall cost of space exploration and utilisation.

There have been lots of new activities behind space sustainability in the last few years and I think we will see more resources being put into resolving the potential risks in orbit, says Daniel Campbell, managing director of Effective Space, a UK-based start-up developing what they call space drones, small satellites that would provide life-extension services similar to those offered by Space Logistics.

The company is part of the Consortium for Execution of Rendezvous and Servicing Operations (CONFERS), led by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which aims to develop operations standards for in-orbit servicing.

Effective Space, which hopes to launch its maiden mission in 2021, relies on a 111.5m platform, designed to extend the life of a satellite by up to 18 years. Space Logistics MEV-1, for comparison, based on a standard platform for geostationary satellites, comes in a larger 3.02.12.3m package.

Just like MEV-1, Effective Spaces drones will be able to detach and serve multiple satellites within their designed lifespan.

Campbell says that in addition to the growing sustainability concerns, in-orbit servicing would be handy as satellite operators await the arrival of low Earth orbit mega-constellations a new and unproven technology for telecommunications.

Many of the operators are waiting to see the impact of these deployments on the geo business, Campbell says. That incentivises them to hold off any replacement satellites and they see life extension as a potential gap filler.

DARPA envisions that robotic in-orbit servicing technology could in the future reduce the cost of geostationary satellites, which currently need to be packed with back-up systems just to ensure the missions success. That obviously increases complexity, weight and cost. In the future,new payloads could be installed as and when required by the robotic service vehicles.

Campbell says Effective Space is also looking at the possibility of using in-orbit servicing in the low Earth orbit (LEO), the area closest to the Earth up to the altitude of 2,000km, which is the most congested and set to become even more cluttered with the arrival of mega-constellations. The business case in LEO, however, will be more difficult to prove. LEO satellites tend to be smaller, cheaper and usually designed with shorter lifespans in mind compared to the geostationary platforms.

Its part of the number-crunching that needs to make sense, Campbell adds. But perhaps the incentive to use these services will not be purely economic but part of licensing requirements that will oblige the operators to safely dispose of their satellites before deploying new ones to LEO.

Space industry consultancy Northern Sky Research predicts that the in-orbit servicing market will be worth $3bn (2.3bn) by 2028 with life extension driving most of the revenue. Chris Brunskill, head of Access to Space at UK Satellite Applications Catapult, compares the current situation in space to the worlds procrastination around climate change and plastic pollution.

At the moment, we are getting away with it, he says. Mostly, it wont be a problem during our lives, but it will be something the next generation will have to worry about. The market is first going to grow very slowly, but as we start to see larger constellations, the need to manage those is going to increasingly grow the need for commercial debris mitigation and in-orbit servicing capabilities and companies.

The UK hopes to carve a slice from the prospective in-orbit servicing pie and has recently launched what is to become the UKs National In-orbit Servicing and Operations Centre in Harwell, Oxfordshire.

There are about half a dozen companies in the UK exploring in-orbit servicing, says Brunskill. That includes start-ups but also some of the established businesses such as Airbus. We are trying to establish the UK as a global centre of excellence and capabilities for debris mitigation and in-orbit servicing. With this facility we want to remove some of the roadblocks for those companies to develop their services.

The Space Applications Catapult has developed the facility in cooperation with the Japan-headquartered start-up Astroscale, which will conduct the worlds first commercial active space debris removal mission, the End-of-Life Service by Astroscale (ELSA) mission, from here in 2020.

Northrup Grumman, in the meantime, is already developing its next-generation in-orbit servicing vehicle, which will enable larger-scale operations and lower the cost of the service. The rendezvous operations will be carried out by the Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV), essentially an upgraded MEV fitted with a robotic arm. The actual propulsion and attitude control function for the client satellite will be provided by the Mission Extension Pods (MEP), smaller and cheaper units that will be installed by the MRV.

The more complex and expensive MRV will be able to install multiple MEPs in a short period of time as well as other augmentation payloads. Northrop Grumman says the MRV will even be able to perform simple repairs and perform detail inspections of the client spacecraft. *

Regulation

The biggest challenge for in-orbit servicing and robotic space operations is not in the engineering and technology field but rather in the legal and regulatory domain. A whole new set of regulations, licensing regimes and insurance policies will be needed for the technology to fully take off.

The regulatory environment is not developed for this type of activity in space, says Anderson. There are regulatory and licensing regimes for the remote sensing of the Earth and for telecommunications, but to do a service like this is something completely new and different.

Space insurers similarly struggle to fit this type of new commercial service into their existing schemes, Anderson adds.

The space insurance market is accustomed to insuring things like geostationary communication satellites but now when we are going to rendezvous and dock in orbit and bring these two vehicles together, it has brought a new challenge, he says. If there was a problem in orbit, who would be liable? How would one calculate what the insurance claim would be?

Brunskill adds that in the UK work is under way to fill these regulatory gaps and update regulations to match the latest technology developments.

I think that the regulatory infrastructure will probably lag behind the commercial need for this, he says. But companies operating mega-constellations will need these services to maintain their own spacecraft, otherwise they would be their own worst enemy.

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Read more:
A new era of space robotics, 36000km above Earth - E&T Magazine

Batteries

Published on February 18th, 2020 | by Guest Contributor

February 18th, 2020 by Guest Contributor

Photo by Zach Shahan, CleanTechnica

MILWAUKEEThe Responsible Battery Coalition (RBC) a leading coalition of companies, academics and organizations dedicated to the responsible management and environmental sustainability of batteries applauded research published today by the University of Michigan (U-M) in theJournal of Energy Storageon best practices for consumers for extending the life of lithium-ion batteries, as well as the cost savings associated with minimizing degradation. The link to the paper can be foundhere.

This research is the second phase of work conducted by U-M and supported by RBC. The first phase was published in May 2019 and outlined ten Green Principles for Vehicle Energy Storage (Green Principles)that represent a comprehensive set of recommendations to guide mobile battery deployment and technology development from an environmental perspective, particularly defining best practices for minimizing the environmental impact of electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

In the new research published today, the U-M team expands onGreen Principle #6 todesign and operate battery systems to maximize service life and limit degradation by outlining nine consumer best practices for extending battery life to decrease costs and reduce environmental burdens associated with the production of new batteries. The new best practices address material consumption, mining impacts and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the disposal of used batteries.

As the nation and world shift to economies powered by batteries, it is paramount as responsible stewards of the environment that we extend the life of all types of batteries, particularly those in our cars and trucks, saidSteve Christensen, executive director of the Responsible Battery Coalition. This work by such a respected research institution as the University of Michigan is an important first step toward creating a generational change in how consumers use and manage batteries.

The International Energy Agency has predicted that 125 million electric vehicles will be on roads globally by 2030.The RBC seeks to develop a circular economy for batteries that ensures that they are part of the solution in creating a more sustainable environment.

Many of the recommended practices discovered by the U-M research team are related to three main variables that impact battery health: temperature, state of charge, and current. Specific recommendations in the findings include:

As the mobile electronics and EV industries continue to grow, even small improvements in lifetime extension will have significant environmental benefits, the authors of theJournal of Energy Storagepaper wrote.

By minimizing exposure to the conditions that accelerate degradation, batteries can last longer. And this has a positive environmental impact, as battery production is a source of greenhouse gas emissions and many other pollutants, said study corresponding authorGreg Keoleian, director of the U-M Center for Sustainable Systems at the School for Environment and Sustainability.

Additionally, there are significant financial incentives for users to avoid adverse conditions, as the cost of lithium-ion batteries can range from 5% to over 50% of a products cost,Keoleiansaid.

As an organization whose members include the worlds largest battery manufacturer and recycler, leading automotive aftermarket retailers, and some of the largest auto producers and transportation fleet owners, were proud to have been able to support this research to help both industry and consumers get maximum life and value out of their lithium-ion battery products, addedChristensen.

In developing its list of nine best practices for lithium-ion battery life extension, U-M researchers, supported by the RBC, based their search on a range of sources, including academic publications, manufacturers user manuals, and open-source consumer information from customer-support websites.

Research Details

In addition to the academic literature reviewed, researchers also surveyed publicly available information from manufacturers, looking for instructions, guidance, warnings or tips regarding the use and maintenance of lithium-ion batteries.

Those companies included 10 cell phone manufacturers (Apple, Google, HTC, Huawei, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, Sony and ZTE), 10 laptop manufacturers (Acer, Apple, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, LG, Microsoft, Samsung and Toshiba), four power tool manufacturers (Bosch, DeWalt, Makita and Milwaukee Tool), and 10 electric vehicle manufacturers, including RBC members Ford Motor Company and Honda.

Authors of theJournal of Energy Storagepaper, in addition to Keoleian, are Maxwell Woody, Maryam Arbabzadeh and Geoffrey M. Lewis of the U-M Center for Sustainable Systems and Anna Stefanopoulou of the U-M Energy Institute.

Read the paper: Strategies to limit degradation and maximize Li-ion battery service critical review and guidance for stakeholdershttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352152X19314227?dgcid=author

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Tags: Acer, Apple, asus, dell, Google, hp, HTC, Huawei, Lenovo, LG, microsoft, Motorola, Nokia, Responsible Battery Coalition, samsung, SONY, toshiba, U-M Center for Sustainable Systems, U-M School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan, ZTE

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Responsible Battery Coalition Applauds University of Michigan Research on Lithium-Ion Battery Degradation Calls Research Important Step in Educating...

Triangle Energy (Global) Limited (ASX: TEG) is an oil production & exploration company, based in Perth, Western Australia. It is currently the registered operator of the producing Cliff Head Oil Field with a 78.75% interest, in addition to a 45% JV interest in the Xanadu-1 Joint Venture oil discovery (TP/15) and a 50% interest in the Mt Horner Production Licence (L7(R1)1). Additionally, TEG holds a 33.34% equity interest in State Gas Limited (ASX: GAS).

The Cliff Head operations, located almost 10 kilometres off the Western Australian coast at a water depth of 15-20 metres, was the first commercial oil operation to be developed in the offshore Perth basin and commenced production in May 2006. The current production license WA-31-L covers over 72km, with the field spreading more than 6km. It includes the one and only offshore Cantilevered jack-up rig and offshore Arrowsmith stabilisation plant in the underexplored Perth basin.

Increased Production: Increasing Throughput, Reduced Costs

During late-2019, the CH-13 well at the Cliff Head field recommenced production, following replacement of an electrical submersible pump, to boost up the Cliff Head field production over 1,000 bopd stable rate.

Source: Triangle Energy & Kalkine Research

Interesting Read: Triangle Energys Cliff Head Oil Field Exceeds 1,000bopd; Are the Share Prices Justified?

The anticipated rise in demand for sweeter crude has boosted margins over the Brent Crude prices in the recent quarters, considering IMO 2020, which restricted the usage of marine fuels with a sulphur content higher than 0.5%.

In July 2018, Triangle Energy (Operations) Pty Ltd, a TEG subsidiary, took over the operations as the registered operator, focussing on maximising the operating margins and the economic life of the offshore Cliff Head Alpha platform, and onshore Arrowsmith Stabilisation Plant.

Cliff Head Renewal Project

During 2019, Triangle progressed on the target identification to further expand the production capacity and economic life of Cliff Head operations. TEG prioritised prospective areas close to the Cliff Head platform with the possibility of operating them with minimum capital requirements.

As Triangle Energy enjoys stable production from Cliff Head operations after the recommencement of CH-13 well, ramping up the daily production to more than a 1,000 barrels of oil, the Company continues its quest to identify and evaluate new promising lands in and around the existing Cliff Head platform.

Several workovers, infill and satellite drilling opportunities within the range of the Cliff Head's Cantilevered jack-up rig were identified during the asset reviewal studies in the first half of 2019. A detailed evaluation for the appraisal of the opportunities followed by the investment decision (Cliff Head Renewal Project) commenced in mid-2019.

The current reserves for the Cliff Head field stand at 1.71 MMstb or Million stock tank barrels (as at 30 June 2019) and will add an additional 2C Contingent Resource of 3.13 MMstb on approval of the final investment decision for the upcoming projects.

The company launched the Cliff Head Renewal program with three prime objectives, which are-

The opportunities for Cliff Head Renewable Project include

The reprocessing of the 3D seismic data was completed at the end of December 2019, with the interpretation of the data planned during early 2020. The final investment decision of the projects would follow the validation from the geological data for which the reprocessing of 3D seismic data was completed in December with interpretation of the data to be revised soon, to build an advanced geological model of the field.

The final investment decision on the prioritised targets is still awaited and could lead to the economic life extension and increased throughput from the Cliff Head operations. The Company plans to start the Cliff Head Renewal Project development well drilling either during 4Q20 or 1Q21.

On 18 February 2020 (AEDT 02:38 PM), the stock of TEG was trading at $ 0.049, up 16.667% from its previous close. The market capitalisation of the Company stood at $ 15.15 million.

This website is a service of Kalkine Media Pty. Ltd. A.C.N. 629 651 672. The website has been prepared for informational purposes only and is not intended to be used as a complete source of information on any particular company. The above article is sponsored but NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold the stock of the company (or companies) under discussion. We are neither licensed nor qualified to provide investment advice through this platform.

The rest is here:
Triangle Energys Cliff Head Renewal Project: Perth Basin First Oil Operations Targeting Economic Life Extension - Kalkine Media

Key point:Raytheon is offering an update to the Patton that makes it a killer (of tanks), but not a survivor.

Just how far can you soup up a tank from the 1960s?

The M60 Patton was the mainstay of the U.S tank fleet in the 1960s and 1970s, before being replaced by the M1 Abrams tank currently in service. However, more than five thousand Pattons remain in service in the armies of nineteen countries. Earlier this year, Raytheon unveiled its Service-Life Extension Package (SLEP) upgrade featuring a new engine, fire control system and 120-millimeter gun.

This M60 SLEP is in competition with a pre-existing three-tier upgrade offered by Israel Military Industries for their M60Sabra. Sabras in Turkish service, designated the M60T, are active on the battlefield of Northern Syria today, while older-model Pattons are fighting on both sides of the war in Yemen.

The new Pattons are faster and deadlierbut are theytoughenough for the modern battlefield?

Americas Cold War Battle Tank

The M60 traces its ancestry all the way back to the M26 Pershing heavy tank, a few dozen of which saw action at the end of the World War II. The Pershing was evolved into a series of Patton tanks armed with 90mm guns, including the M46, M47 and M48. The M60, introduced in 1960, was the last: a tall-profiled brawler designed to outmatch the ubiquitous Soviet T-54 tank by virtue of its heavier armor and long M68 105 millimeter gun.

The 50-ton M60s were deployed to Europe in case World War III broke out, anddidntsee action in the Vietnam War, except for some bridge-laying and engineering variants. Instead, M48 tanks took on North Vietnamese PT-76s and T-54s in a small number of engagements, and evenbattled Swedish-made tanks in the Dominican Republic.

It was in the Middle East that the M60 Patton first showed its mettle. During the Yom Kippur War, Israeli M60s rumbled to the rescue of the Seventh and 188th Armored Brigades on the Golan Heights, breaking the back of a Syrian onslaught numbering over 3 thousand tanks. However, on the southern front, AT-3 anti-tank missiles devastated M60s counterattacking the Egyptian beachhead on the Suez canal. The Pattons tall profile made it an easy target, while its frontally mounted hydraulics were prone to bursting into flames when the armor was penetrated. Nonetheless, the Israelis were so fond of the Patton that they kept it in service until 2014, upgrading them into several generations ofMagachtanks.

The Patton saw quite a few upgrades over its service life. The avant-garde M60A2 Starship variant used a 155-millimeter gun that could fire Shillelagh anti-tank missiles; it was quickly phased out because of crippling technical limitations. The final version, the M60A3 TTS, came with improved fire control systems and thermal sights that made it an effective night fighter. Some Marine Corps Pattons were even fitted with explosive-reactive armor.

However, by the 1980s the Soviet Union had exported large numbers of the T-72 tank, which equaled or outmatched the Patton in armor and firepower. Meanwhile, the United States introduced the M1 Abrams tank, which proved a decisive technological leap ahead in both firepower (once it received a 120 millimeter gun) and protection, thanks to its composite armor.

The last U.S. M60s were operated by the Marine Corps, and finally saw heavy combat in the 1991 Gulf War in Kuwait, knocking out around 100 Iraqi tanks for the loss of a single Patton. However, that reflected the unequal training and tactics of the opposing sides more than anything else, and shortly afterwards the Patton was phased out of U.S. service.

However, M60s remain the most numerous main battle tank in service in many countries today, including Egypt (1,700), Turkey (932), Taiwan (450), Saudi Arabia (450), Morocco (427), Thailand (178), and Bahrain (180.)

Whats Improved in the SLEP and Sabra M60s?

Raytheons SLEP upgrade focuses on improved firepower and mobility.

First, it replaces the old M68 gun with the potent 120mm M256 gun used in the Abrams tank. This will transform the Patton from a tank that would struggle against a 1980s era T-72 to one that can penetrate most modern tanks. Furthermore, so as to actually hit the target, the M60 SLEP has a new digital targeting system taken from the M1A1D to replace the Pattons dated technology. Modern targeting computers have made tank gunnery while moving viable, so this is a big plus. Finally, the hydraulic system for rotating the turret has been replaced with an electric one, increasing rotation speed and reducing the aforementioned bursting into flames problem when hit.

Second, Raytheon has replaced the 750 horsepower diesel engine with a brand new 950 horsepower motor. This is nice, because the basic M60 lumbers at 30 miles per hour, while maximum speeds over 40 miles per hour are typical for modern Western tanks.

Now, the prototype filmed in Raytheonspromo videoalso has a lot of features theydontadvertise: slat armor, which can be effective at deflecting shaped charge warheads in rocket propelled grenades, add-on armor panels, and an auxiliary power unit and cooling fans in the back. It appears that these arenotstandard features of the SLEP upgrade.

For comparison, the Israeli Sabra II upgrade also boasts a 120 millimeter gun of comparable performance paired with a new targeting computer, as well as a superior 1 thousand horsepower engine which increases speed to 34 miles per hour. Unlike the SLEP, the Sabra also has beefed up armor, giving the turret an angular shape. This includes the addition of explosive-reactive armorthat is, bricks of explosive that prematurely detonate incoming missiles and shells as well as appliqu armor plates.

A similarMagach7C tank fitted with appliqu armor reportedly survived eighteen hits from Hezbollah AT-3 Sagger missiles without being penetrated. However, the Sagger dates back to the 1960s and current missiles have far greater penetrating power.

How Useful Are Those Upgrades?

The more powerful engines will help the Patton keep up with other mechanized units on the battlefield. However, even with the upgrade, the M60s power-to-weight ratio isnt stellar.

With the 120-millimeter gun and new fire control system, the M60 can both hit and destroy the majority of tanks in use today at medium to long range. M60 operators will likely lack the advanced M829E3 and E4 depleted uranium rounds designed to circumvent the most sophisticated reactive armor systems, but few operational tanks benefit from them so far. So, the M60 SLEP could be a decent tank hunter.

However, the majority of tanks on the battlefield these daysarentfighting other tanks. Theyre exchanging fire with insurgent infantryincreasing numbers of whom are packing modern long-range anti-tank guided missiles like the Kornet, as well as more widespread short-range rocket propelled grenades. The best of these weapons have proven effective even against modern tanks such as the M1 and Merkava.

The Patton is considerably more vulnerable than the M1 or Merkavaand even the older T-72! The Pattons old-fashioned cast steel frontal armor is rated equivalent to 253 millimeters Rolled Hardened Armor, the standard measure of tank armor effectiveness. Modern tanks use composite armor which is drastically more effective for the same weight, especially against shaped charge warheads. A modern M1A2 is rated equivalent to around 800 millimeters verses tanks shells and 1300 verses shaped charges.

By contrast, 90s-era 120 millimeter sabot shells could pierce the equivalent of around 700 RHA, and the AT-17 Kornet anti-tank missile can penetrate 1300 millimeters.

The Patton is also easier to hit because of its tall profile, and more likely to burst into flames when penetrated because the main gun ammunition isnotstowed separately, as it is in the Abrams.

The M60 SLEP doesnt feature improved armor. The upgraded Sabradoesand we know already how the up-armored Pattons have fared against anti-tank guided missiles thanks to Turkey.

On April 21 of this year, a Turkish M60T in Bashiqueh, Iraq,was struck by an ISIS tandem-charge Kornet anti-tank missile, damaging the vehicle but not harming the crew. However, the tank appears to have been put out of operation.

In August this year, Turkish M60A3 and M60T poured over the border in support of allied rebels as part of Operation Euphrates Shield, first chasing ISIS out of the town of Jarablus without a fight and then attacking Kurdish militias. Kurdish fightersknocked outseveral M60s with long-range missiles, inflicting the first Turkish casualties in the intervention.

Turkish M60T Sabra tanks eventually redirected their firepower against ISIS-held townsand unfortunately, were subject to a series of successful attacks by Kornet missiles. In the videos posted online, two of the three Pattons destroyed burst into flames.

In the second incident, only one of the crew survived. By now it is believed at least eleven Turkish Pattons have been destroyed in Syria.

The situation is even worse in Yemen, where Pattons are operated both by Army units supporting Houthi rebels as well as Saudi Arabia. More than 22 destroyed Pattonshave been recorded in the conflict.

See the original post here:
Could America's Old M60 Patton Tank Fight In a War Right Now? - The National Interest Online

Just ten days ago we published a last-gasp Call for Entries to the A Design Awards and Competitionand now its do or die. Well, miss out on the chance to be honoured in one of over 100 main categories and many more sub-categories; honoured in the largest and most diverse design competition in the world.

A Design Award Winners Exhibition.

If you were still debating submitting an entry, take heedas today were here to advise that the deadline for submission is 28 February. With a whole host of benefits and opportunities to be wonincluding representing your country in the World Design Rankings, international press coverage, the invaluable chance of having your designs critiqued by an esteemed panel of academics, members of the press, and experienced academics, a physical trophy, access to the esteemed gala-night presentation, and much moreits high time to get your act together and your work submitted.

If youre unsure of how to classify your designs, take a look at adesignaward.com, where youll find a list of the most popular A Design Award & Competition categories, including Interior Space and Exhibition Design; Architecture, Building and Structure Design; Arts, Crafts and Ready-Made Design; Street Furniture Design; Advertising, Marketing and Communication Design; and Mobile Technologies, Applications and Software Design. For those whose work could be classed as niche, take a look at the full list here adesignaward.com/design-award-categories.

With just 11 days remaining to be a part of this esteemed competition and reward yourself and your country in the process, we cannot stress enough the importance of not delaying any further. Some of our favourite winning designs will be featured on We Heart on 15 April, and you could be one of them. Until then, take a look at some past winners. But only after youve registered your own potential winning entry. Hurry.

@adesignaward

Barin Ski Resort by Ryra Design Studio, Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Category, 20152016.

Hans Gretel Packaging by Antonia Skaraki, Winner in Packaging Design Category, 20182019.

Skynet Display Space by Kris Lin, Winner in Interior Space and Exhibition Design Category, 20162017.

Slash Lamp Lighting Object by Dragos Motica, Winner in Limited Edition and Custom Design Category, 20142015.

Tarkeeb Gate House and Garden Security Booth by William Sarnecky and Michael Hughes, Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Category, 20182019.

Jiangshan Fishing Village Renovation Renovation by Mix Architecture,Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Category, 20182019.

Cecilip Facade by Dante Luna G, Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Category, 20182019.

P Y Lung Breath Training Game by Yuzhen Lin, Yiting Chang and Yuhsiang Hou, Winner in Toy, Games and Hobby Products Design Category, 20182019.

Taetea Tea Experience and Retail by Jie Liu,Winner in Interior Space and Exhibition Design Category, 20182019.

Rising Canes Architecture Modular by Chris Precht, Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Category, 20152016.

Da Chang Muslim Cultural Center Cultural by Hejingtang Studio, Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Category, 20172018.

Life Extension Residential House by Pin-Chi Yu, Winner in Interior Space and Exhibition Design Category, 20172018.

Wuliepoch Culture Center Culture Center by Yingfan Zhang and Xiaojun Bu, Winner in Interior Space Design Category, 20182019.

Continued here:
Have you completed a creative project that deserves global recognition? Move fast, it's your last chance to register for this year's A' Design...

TIRUCHI

The Indian Institute of Metals, Tiruchi Chapter, has teamed up with Welding Research Institute to conduct a two-day programme on Engineering and Life Extension aspects of Boilers on February 24 and 25.

The programme will highlight the latest trends in boiler design and life extension aspects to original equipment manufacturers, consultants, faculty, researchers and students, a press release issued by the Chairman of Tiruchi Chapter Daniel Sahayaraj said.

Aspiring participants can correspond through email tmaqiim@gmail.com or visit website http://www.iimtiruchi.org or contact over phone: 9442130409, the release said.

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In a step forward towards addressing the issue of regular spares and support for Russian military equipment with the armed forces, 14 MoUs were signed between Indian and Russian companies for setting up joint ventures covering a range of equipment from modern T-90 tanks to legacy Pechora air defence systems.

The MoUs were signed during the 5th India Russia military industry conference held during the Defexpo 2020 in Lucknow. They come under the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) on joint manufacturing of spares in India signed last September for mutual cooperation in manufacturing of spares, components, aggregates and other material related to Russian or Soviet-origin arms and defence equipment.

The first Request for Proposal for manufacturing of parts in India under the provision of IGA was also handed over by the Navy to the identified Indian industry, the Defence Ministry said in a statement. The conference was co-chaired by Dr. Ajay Kumar, Defence Secretary and Oleg Ryazantsev, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of Russia.

One MoU was signed between the Spetz-Radio Corporation of Russia and the Ananth Technologies based in Hyderabad for the development, production and manufacture of small spacecraft for remote sensing. Joint creation and commercial use [providing a radio frequency resource] of a network of ground control stations for small spacecraft and a network of ground stations for the reception and processing of earth remote sensing data, a list of the agreements concluded said.

One important MoU was signed between the Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and the Almaz Antey of Russia for exploring the feasibility of establishing a joint venture in India for the production of various sub systems of air defence missile systems like Tunguska, Kavadrat, the OSA-AKA, Pechora air defence system as well as the Shilka self-propelled air defence gun system. The MoU also covered refurbishment and life extension of the missiles. Most of these air defence systems are now in the process of being phased out and replaced with new ones.

Saying India has taken a number of steps to expedite the collaboration with Russian companies, Dr. Kumar called for expeditious implementation from the Russian side as well which has some procedural issues to sort out. There are also agreements on emerging technologies Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, blockchain and robotics based on Russian technologies under the proposed Indo-Russian Joint Venture ICT Center of Excellence.

Lack of timely spares and support has been a constant issue faced by the military a major part of which consists of Russian defence hardware. Several such support agreements are in the pipeline and expected to be concluded soon, officials said.

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Martha* looks expensive. Not freshly minted footballers wife expensive. Not bouncy-haired ladies who dont lunch expensive. But quietly expensive: skin that glimmers like the Cullinan Diamond; a body as smooth as Carrara marble. Just unmistakably well crafted. And so she should: the 34-year-old luxury retailer spends almost 4,000 a month thats how much it costs to be tweaked and perfected by the latest advances in health.

Theres the weekly three-minute cryotherapy sessions at 100 a pop. Then theres the 200 personal training workouts, of which she has four each week. Theres also the mandatory 150 monthly vitamin drip and at least one massage a fortnight (call it 160), as well as a personalised supplement plan that seems a bargain at 50 per week. Thats around 4,000, including the cryo, but not including facials and beauty things, of course, she says. Of course. And, to be fair, its working for her. With her plump, practically line-free face, and raven hair so shiny you could almost reapply your lipstick in front of it, she is a walking advertisement for the power of whacking a hefty monthly mortgage payment at your health.

But how much is good health really worth? Apparently, when youre part of the super-rich set, the answer is: a lot. When UBS investment bank surveyed its millionaires, nine out of ten agreed that health is more important than wealth with its highest earners willing to give up half of their fortune to guarantee an extra decade of good health. Because when you have everything money can buy, what you really want is the one thing it cant. Until now.

An entire industry has sprung up over the past decade, catering largely to the wealthiest 1%, but also to mere fiscal mortals, too, who aspire to perfect health in the way they once aspired to own a Birkin bag. Take last years two-day Goop conference, where doctors, scientists and health-mad celebrities took to the stage at Londons Re:Centre sanctuary. A one-day ticket set visitors back 1,000. But for a two-day, full-access pass with VIP workouts and a room at the shiny new Kimpton Fitzroy Hotel? Try 4,500.(According to Goop, all of these full-access tickets sold out.)

'They can throw as much at their health and body as they like, with MRI scans, DNA tests...'

Or take the new offering from the exclusive Arts Club in London, which has teamed up with Lanserhof, the almost mythical Austrian health retreat that has been peddling longevity and luminosity for decades. Now, those members can pay 6,500 a year (non-members will have to cough up an extra 1,500) to have access to their on-site Lanserhof clinic. For that they can throw as much at their health and body as they like, with MRI scans, DNA tests, osteopathy sessions, shock wave therapy, acupuncture treatments... the list goes on. And on.

At the top end of the health scale, however, the sky is the limit. At RAAD fest, an annual conference held in the US attended by many of the worlds leading billionaires, a number of scientists and technologists parade the latest evolutions in healthcare. They are dystopian-sounding technologies, such as hyperbaric oxygen chambers that offer expediated healing, as well as stem cell IV infusions (yours for around 875 a pop).

What do they all have in common? A big price tag and the promise of immortality. After all, RAAD stands for The Revolution Against Ageing and Death, and is organised by the controversial Coalition for Radical Life Extension. Their mission: to help the super-rich dispose of their money before they hit their graves.But, ideally for them, not to hit their tombstones... ever.

Dr Sabine Donnai is the founder of private health service Viavi and creator of its Health Assessment and HealthStrategy, seen as the Aston Martin of health programmes. Donnai, previously the medical director at Nuffield Health Wellbeing, saw a gap in the market for an assessment that went beyond the norm. The market was there. Theyve worked hard, theyve made money and now they ask, I want to continue enjoying this, so what do I do?, she explains. They want the data. They want the control. They want to understand what their health looks like.

'They dont want to be hassled by illness, but want to live a better life'

Her clientele is split into two groups. The first: the worried well, seeking preventive measures. They come to us to understand a thorough picture of their health and what they can do to improve it, says Donnai. For example, a hormone test might reveal underlying reasons for weight gain, or a toxin level result might expose risks to your immune system. The second, smaller group have been diagnosed with a problem, but want to solve it rather than treat it. The difference is important. Say they have cancer we arent oncologists or surgeons, but our role might be to identify how they could prevent it from returning. They dont want to be hassled by illness, says Donnai. But want to live a better life.

Viavis assessment can go as far as the client chooses. In a single day, you can have everything from a transvaginal scan and breast ultrasound to a urine hormone screen and toxic body burden test. When I ask one client, an international business owner in her forties, why she chose to invest in the test, she says, Its the best. Its hard to put a price on it... she trails off. Viavi, however, is happy to do so: the full Health Assessment and Health Strategy costs 15,000.

On the other side of the city, Workshop Gymnasium is doing for fitness what Viavi is doing for health: catering to the demands of the richest 1%. Hidden in Knightsbridge, beneath the Bvlgari Hotel, it looks more like a hedge fund managers apartment than a gym, with wooden floors, honeyed lighting and towers of glossy green apples beside fans of shiny magazines.

Its top-tier membership will set you back 13,000 a year. There are also add-ons, including supplements and physiotherapy, pushing some members spend past the 20,000 mark. Its where Martha splurges on her 200 an hour PT sessions with founder Lee Mullins, who reports increasing interest in his services from around the world. (Workshop has locations in China, Milan, Dubai and Bali.) They want a customised approach and come for the assessments we offer to tailor their programme, he says of his client base of CEOs, entertainment industry types and models.

They also get training on demand Workshop offers a 24/7 service, in a private setting if requested, with total discretion. Mullins is tight-lipped about his celebrity clients, save a handful of models, including brand ambassadors Amelia Windsor, Clara Paget and Eliza Cummings. Clients can even have a trainer travel with them on business trips or holidays for a fee of up to 2,000 per day.

There are options for those with slightly less disposable income. At BelleCell, a biohacking clinic next to The Ritz London, packages are available at varying levels. Set in a 500-year-old vault, comprising a series of spaceship-like pods, it serves to optimise cell performance and recovery and offer effective health solutions total wellbeing on a molecular level. Which, in English, means they claim to make you better, stronger and healthier. This includes full bio-analysis tests and cell-optimising treatments (oxygen pods, vitamin infusions, alien-esque capsules in which to exercise). The top package, a Genetic Test for Life, will set you back almost 3,000, but therapies start from 110 in order to be accessible to everyone, says founder Kasia Zajkowska, a former molecular bio-scientist. Well, maybe not exactly everyone...

'She spends almost 10,000 a year on aesthetics alone'

Dropping up to 15,000 on a health test attracts a specific section of the super-wealthy, one thats already aware and selective about wellness, says Zajkowska. She claims theyre not doing it for vanity: Their choice to spend is for the most part not about aesthetics, but future proofing. For some, the investment in themselves does come with more of a beauty focus. Carrie, a 51-year-old property business company director, who lives in Cheshire, tells me that yes, she goes to the gym and takes supplements for health and longevity, but she wants to look better, too. She spends almost 10,000 a year on aesthetics alone (monthly facials, radio frequency and micro needling) money that is more than pocket-change to her. But shes willing to prioritise the spend for the results.

For many, even a single treatment at one of these clinics would be a luxury or an impossibility. Never mind a super-screening that costs more than some house deposits. But in England, with the NHS available to all, are they even necessary? Women are offered free cervical screening from the age of 25, free breast screening from 50 and a free NHS health check from 40. This extensive check looks for early signs of high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease and dementia. And, according to former NHS GP Dr Juliet McGrattan, it could be the better option, even when you do have money to blow, due to the legitimacy of the tests.

With any screening test, there is a possibility that a false positive (when something is detected that isnt actually a problem) or a false negative (when something is missed) may occur, she tells me. The NHS has meticulously evaluated its offering to try to ensure it has the lowest number of these results. Her worry is that private tests may not have been so thoroughly evaluated. She adds that private companies cant always offer care beyond the test, so you might be directed to your NHS GP anyway. In her opinion, theres no need to part with money.

As for Martha, her 4,000 monthly investment is about boosting energy, feeling better and staying strong, something us mere mortals can relate to as we weave a rather less extortionate version of wellness into our daily lives. But she admits, Appearances matter. I have to look the part and be seen to be taking part. It seems that consumption isnt always so inconspicuous after all.

*Name has been changed

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Meet The Super-Rich Spending 4000 A Month On Their Health - elle.com

Magnesium is the mineral that just keeps growing. Nutritional Outlook has included magnesium in its annual Ingredients to Watch projections for a few years runningand reasons are strong for highlighting magnesium again in 2020.

First, sales: Market researcher SPINS (Chicago) reports that in the 52 weeks ending October 6, 2019, magnesium saw impressive sales growth that pushed the mineral, for the first time, to rank within the top-10 ingredients, in terms of dollar change, that SPINS tracks cross-channel (mainstream, natural, and specialty gourmet channels). Combining these channels, magnesium experienced double-digit sales growth last year of 11%, taking sales to $151 million by the periods end. (For more insights on this cross-channel growth, click here.)

As many have predicted in years past, magnesium is set to overtake calcium as the mineral markets superstar. Says Nick Dehnert, vice president of brand marketing for supplements company Nutranext, The rapid growth of the magnesium category helped it recently surpass the size of the calcium category in the natural channel of trade, and we expect magnesium to continue its healthy growth trend as consumer awareness grows.

Consumer interest in magnesium is on the rise. The Council for Responsible Nutritions (CRN; Washington, DC) latest Consumer Survey on Dietary Supplements, conducted on more than 2000 U.S. adults in August 2019, ranked magnesium as one of the top-10 dietary supplements U.S. consumers take. In the 2019 survey, 18% of supplement users surveyed said they take magnesium. In fact, says Andrea Wong, PhD, senior vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs for CRN, According to CRNs Consumer Survey on Dietary Supplements, consumer usage of magnesium supplements overall has increased over the last five years.

Andrea Rosanoff, PhD, is an expert on magnesium research. As the director of research and science information outreach for the Center for Magnesium Education & Research LLC (CMER; Pahoa, HI; http://www.magnesiumeducation.com), Rosanoff has been studying magnesium for 35 years. Until recently, she says, magnesium has been a very underevaluated and underwatched nutritional supplement. (CMER, soon to be a nonprofit organization, comprises independent scholars whose mission is to promote nutritional magnesium awareness and the peer-reviewed science behind magnesium.)

But while magnesium has been underrated in the past, she says, that is slowly changing. I would say that in the last three to five years, people have come up to me and said, Oh, I read about magnesium, and its really important, wanting to know a little bit more about it. Interestingly, Rosanoff says, the dieticians that her Center speaks to are often less aware about the research and importance of magnesiumthat, in fact, it is consumers who seem to be giving magnesium its boost. Its the consumer who seems to be interested in driving the desire for knowledge about magnesium, she says.

Chalk that up to growing research and media attention on magnesiums role in good health. Rosanoff says there is more than 50 years worth of research on magnesium by now. So, what does research show?

Studies are revealing magnesiums role in many body systems, says Vanessa Pavey, ND, who is also an education scientist for supplements brand Life Extension. Magnesium helps regulate heart muscle contraction and relaxes arterial smooth muscles to promote healthy blood flow. Magnesium aids in synaptic connections between neurons to support memory. It is also a cofactor for enzymes that regulate the neurotransmitters associated with mood. And, it is becoming common knowledge that magnesium supports more regular bowel movements.

Given these benefits, its no surprise to see, per SPINS data, that magnesium sales were up in the following health supplement categories: digestive health (mainstream channel), brain health (natural channel), heart health (natural and specialty gourmet channels), mood (natural and specialty gourmet channels), and bone health (specialty gourmet channel). Magnesium is also linked to healthy blood sugar management.

Where is the scientific evidence for magnesiums efficacy strongest?

Studies are long-reaching on magnesiums benefits for heart health, especially its benefits for those suffering from high blood pressure. Rosanoff, who in 2003 co-authored a book called The Magnesium Factor together with her mentor, the late Mildred S. Seelig, MD, MPH, says that in the cardiovascular space, the research is quite robust on magnesium. And while pharmaceuticals and antihypertensive medications have taken over as treatments prescribed for heart disease and high blood pressure, Rosanoff says she believes that the real cause of heart disease epidemic in the Western world and spreading globally is a low-magnesium diet.

The whole heart disease epidemic is the symptom[T]hey have all these treatments for it, and weve been spending all this money on it, but there seems to be a reluctance to take a look and say that the core issue is really a low magnesium intake that happens chronically, and its happening to the entire population, she adds. What we are doing is treating the symptoms of what is in fact a nutritional deficiency in most casesnot all cases. In 2016, CMER was instrumental in the submission of a qualified health claim petition to FDA linking magnesium to lowering blood pressure. The petition is still in review.

Stress management is also an evolving market for magnesium, reflecting consumers growing search for stress aids. And while the mental health research on magnesium is nowhere as robust as it is for heart health, Rosanoff says that magnesium is crucial to optimizing how you face stress. Because magnesium is involved in so many bodily reactions and even up to 80% of metabolism, if you get low in magnesium, your reactions just cant go as well as they optimally could, she says.

This is how basic magnesium is to life, she points out, and in some of these basic cellular metabolic reactions that make life run smoothly.

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Magnesium saw huge cross-channel sales growth last year. Here's what's driving the ingredient in 2020: 2020 Ingredient trends to watch for foods,...

We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep. William Shakespeare

Life is indeed little. Englands bard must have sat beside many rivers and sacred places with wise souls to speak and write the way he did. His words emulate the teachings of my deman (grandparents) and mentors. They taught me that each time we see a falling star we know a new life is forming from an old soul, eventually returning to the sky when that life is rounded by sleep, and that all things in life are circular. I think of myself as a life extension of an old soul that has been loaned to me. I have always longed to be in the company of people older than me and wiser than me to learn, to grow and to be inspired by their lifes performance.

There are so many stories that need to be told and remembered. We all want to go forward. We need to respect the elements. Roma Yibiyung Winmar

We Noongar of the south-west of Western Australia constitute one of Australias largest Aboriginal cultural blocs, both in terms of population and a vast estate of lands and waters which includes Perth, Albany and Esperance. We share a common ancestral language with various regional dialects. As the first Aboriginal group in Western Australia to experience sustained foreign contact and British invasion, Noongar bore the brunt of land theft, frontier violence, and the dislocation from homelands and family resulting from successive government policies of segregation and assimilation.

Despite staggering odds, we Noongar find ways to continue to sing and speak the way our ancestors did. Noongar language is all around us in the names of local towns, suburbs, flora and fauna. Over 30,000 people identify as Noongar, and while Australian census data suggests that less than 2% of them speak the language at home, this number has grown exponentially in every census since 1996 as a result of continued efforts since the 1980s.

One of the most fulfilling things I have ever done in my life was sit with my grandmothers to learn our ancient Noongar language. The time spent with them and my everlasting connection with language is dear to my heart. Nine years ago, my cousin and modern theatre visionary Kyle J Morrison revealed his dream idea to develop a full Shakespeare work in Noongar language. Although initially surprised by the audacity of the idea, I jumped at the chance to collaborate and pay homage to the survival of our language.

We held a series of sporadic workshops over six years in which Noongar actors could reclaim the sounds of their mother tongue together in a safe, trusting and empowering environment. This process led to the formation of an ensemble of nine actors who have performed a 90-minute adaptation of Shakespeares Macbeth, titled Hecate, in this years Perth festival. I ended up with the responsibility to adapt and direct Hecate, co-translating it with my husband. The production is receiving critical acclaim, standing ovations and full houses. Still, the real achievement is supporting the emergence of more than nine Noongar people who can speak Noongar language now and into the future.

Hecate is indebted to broader longstanding efforts in our community to share, revitalise and maintain our language. Under the guidance of our editor, Roma Yibiyung Winmar, and with the encouragement of other senior language speakers, we have worked together to craft Hecate with the utmost care and attention to detail. Noongar words and philosophy are the true hero in Hecate the way we communicate, signal, celebrate, sing and cry our language has always been, and will always be, powerful. Why? Because we value truth in storytelling. Noongar people have always had the heart and organic ability to hold an audience captivated on story alone. Hecate celebrates the true strength of Noongar language expression, away from societys stereotypes, tropes and confinements of us. In this production, we have not eased into simply fulfilling the ways theatre audiences expect us to look and sound as Aboriginal performers. Hecate pays tribute to boodjar (mother earth) and all her wonders including us!

The courageous Noongar actors who bring these words to life on stage are truly inspirational and pave the way for a stronger Noongar speaking community.

Twelve Noongar words spoken in Hecate:

Kylie Bracknell [Kaarljilba Kaardn] is an actress, voice-over artist, television presenter, writer, dramaturg and theatre director from the south west of Western Australia, the Noongar nation

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Noongar words and philosophy are the true hero in our Macbeth adaptation Hecate - The Guardian

WASHINGTON The U.S. Army released its top 10 programs it intends to cancel or reduce in fiscal 2021 on Feb. 13, which accounts for $1.13 billion of the $2.4 billion the service plans to shift to higher priority modernization efforts.

Through a second round of night court an effort to find and shift funding from programs that dont align with the Armys modernization priorities or the National Defense Strategy the Army plans to eliminate 41 programs and reduce or delay another 39 programs across the five-year budget plan from FY21 through FY25, according to FY21 budget documents released Feb. 10.

That would allow $13.5 billion in funds to be moved toward the Armys top six modernization priorities.

During a budget briefing with the Pentagon press on Feb. 11, the Army said it would produce its list of the top 10 cuts and reductions. But when asked for more details, the service could not explain why it was unable to produce the entire list to the media, but noted it was provided to Congress.

In addition to a few programs the Army already revealed when asked specifically on Feb. 10 such as its plan to cancel the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) and a delayed Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) buy the service is also cutting from missile, vehicle, communications and electronic warfare programs.

The Army revealed in the list that its cancellation of the APKWS program frees up $122 million in FY21.

The service also plans to cancel an FY20 new start program in FY21 the Mobile Intermediate Range Missile, or MIRM, which will save $90 million.

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The Army had planned over the next five budget cycles in FY20 to spend nearly $1 billion on MIRM, which is essentially a land-based cruise missile eyed for operations in the Indo-Pacific region to address the medium-range (1,000-kilometer) gap in capability there.

The service was going to move into a technology-maturation and risk-reduction phase in FY21 for the effort.

Plans to fund a service life extension program for the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System are also canceled, according to the list, and will save the Army $42.5 million.

The Army is also canceling the Explosive Hazard Roller, Vehicle Optics Sensor System, freeing up $21.6 million as well as the High Mobility Engineer Excavator program worth $16.4 million in FY21.

The cancellation of a Heavy Equipment Transporter variant dubbed EHET in the list frees up another $7.8 million to be used for higher priority programs.

An electronic warfare system called the DOD Manager Controlled Improvised Explosive Device Electronic Warfare system is also being canceled valued at $4.3 million.

The service is also eliminating the Route Clearance Interrogation System ($3.5 million), the Light Engineer Utility Trailer ($3.3 million), and the Tactical Electronic Power research and development program ($3.2 million).

Overall, the top 10 canceled programs amount to $314.8 million.

The Army will reduce Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle modifications further after cutting future upgrades beyond its A4 variant in FY20. The service is working to replace the Bradley down the road with an Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle program, which is currently fraught with uncertainty.

The reduction amounts to $222.2 million in FY21 to cover other modernization efforts. The Army intended to spend $715.3 million in FY21, according to the FY20 budget justification documents.

The Army will now spend $493.1 million which supports procurement of multiple modifications to the Bradley vehicles including the following: procurement and installation of the Track and Suspension [engineering change proposal], procurement and fielding of M2A4 vehicles, upgrades to the Bradley Fire Support Team vehicle, procurement of training devices and procurement of safety upgrades, according to FY21 budget documents.

The service notes that current projects indicate the Bradley and its fire support vehicle will remain in armored brigade combat team formations until the 2050s.

Some of the funding reduction comes from the elimination of production and fielding of an active protection system, according to the budget books. The Army is still working toward an APS for the vehicle but has run into a few issues that must be worked through, including changes to the APS itself. And the service needs the Bradley A4 to properly run the system, as A3 power capabilities cant support it.

The Army is freeing up $201.6 million by delaying procurement of the JLTV by three years, but that wont affect the services overall procurement objective. According to Pentagon budget documents, the Army is requesting $894.4 million in FY21 for 1,920 JLTVs of various configurations as well as 1,334 JLTV-T companion trailers.

If funding levels remain consistent with the [FY21] funding profile, the Army anticipates reaching the [acquisition program objective] in FY41, the service said in a statement providing clarity to the newly released budget documents.

The Joint Assault Bridge is also taking a $126.2 million hit. The JAB program is delayed a year due to difficulty with the hydraulics system, which has since been fixed. The program will go for another initial operational test this year after struggling through its first attempt in April 2019.

According to FY20 budget documents, the Army planned to spend $164.3 million in FY21, but will now only spend $72.2 million on the program in that fiscal year.

The Army is also reducing its Close Terrain Shaping Obstacle program, which are munitions used to create obstacles on the battlefield, by $92.9 million. It will also cut $36.6 million out of its Lightweight Laser Designated Rangefinder program.

As the service prepares to procure a new precision strike missile, or PrSM, it has reduced its plans to conduct a service life extension program for the Army Tactical Missile, or ATACMS, which PrSM will ultimately replace. The Army will save $35.6 million in FY21 for that decision.

Additionally, while the service had funded the ATACMS service life extension program across the five-year defense plan in its FY20 budget documents, the FY21 documents show no funding in its five-year plan past FY21.

The Army is also reducing funding for the Distributed Common Ground System-Army, a data analytics capability for intelligence analysis, by $30.6 million due to savings, the list indicates.

And the service is cutting out $25.5 million from PROPHET, a signals intelligence program.

While the Army did not specify what mortars will be cut, it plans to reduce mortar procurement by $22.7 million, and the service will cut from its Total Army Munitions Requirement by $21.9 million.

Through all of the top 10 reductions, the Army will move $815.8 million into priority programs.

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Here's the US Army's top 10 canceled and reduced programs in FY21 - DefenseNews.com

Kellstrom Defense Aerospace (KDA) has announced a partnership with Lynden Air Cargo to install the first Digital Fuel Quantity Measurement Solution (DFQMS) on 382G (L-100) aircraft.

DFQMS is KDAs latest aircraft life extension product (LEP) and a modern active capacitance system.

Under the partnership, Lynden will also complete the supplemental type certificate (STC) for the L-100 aircraft type. The modernisation solution will support legacy C-130 and L-100 aircraft.

Kellstrom Defense said in a statement: The engineered product operating segment has invested to bring in a full-scale development programme for this technology, supported by our partners at the AMETEK SFMS and PDS divisions and the system engineering team at Cascade Aerospace, a Lockheed Martin service and engineering centre.

The DFQMS system improves system reliability, lowers material cost and increases mission readiness by replacing legacy fuel quantity measurement systems and aircraft wiring harnesses.

The Lynden installation is expected to clear the way for global fleet retrofit of this technology.

Kellstrom Defense Aerospace LEP vice-president Michael Farmer said: We are excited to work closely with Lynden on their fleet of 382G (L-100) aircraft to complete STC development and ensure that this critical technology reaches maturity.

It has been a team effort with AMETEK, Cascade Aerospace, Lynden, and KDA committing investment, resources, and technical know-how to achieve this milestone.

Kellstrom Defense develops and deploys aircraft upgrades that include the SHORT-POD APU and E2H ECS upgrades for C-130 and L-100 aircraft.

In October 2018, Cascade Aerospace signed an exclusive agreement with Kellstrom Defense to support the upgrade installation for the C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft.

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Kellstrom Defense and Lynden partner to install DFQMS on L-100 aircraft - Airforce Technology

Kellstrom Defense Aerospace (KDA) has partnered with Lynden Air Cargo (Lynden) to be the launch customer for the first installation and entry into service for the latest aircraft life extension product (LEP), KDAs Digital Fuel Quantity Measurement Solution (DFQMS). Lynden will also complete the Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for the 382G (L-100) aircraft type for this modernization solution to support legacy C-130 and L-100 aircraft.

The Engineered Product operating segment has invested to bring in a full-scale development program for this technology, supported by our partners at the AMETEK PDS and Thermal divisions and the system engineering team at Cascade Aerospace, a Lockheed Martin service and engineering center.

The DFQMS is a modern active capacitance system that replaces legacy fuel quantity measurement systems and aircraft wiring harnesses to improve system reliability, lower material cost, and increase mission readiness. The Lynden installation will clear the way for global fleet retrofit of this technology and will drive operator value by increasing mission availability and ensuring accurate fuel measurement ensuring mission duration.

Michael Farmer, KDAs LEP Vice President, comments, "We are excited to work closely with Lynden on their fleet of 382G (L-100) aircraft to complete STC development and ensure that this critical technology reaches maturity. It has been a team effort with AMETEK, Cascade Aerospace, Lynden, and KDA committing investment, resources, and technical know-how to achieve this milestone."

Kellstrom Defense is recognized as the global leader for military aircraft support and sustainment, with a long history of developing and deploying aircraft upgrades, that include the SHORT-POD APU and E2H ECS upgrades for legacy C-130 and L-100 aircraft.

About Kellstrom Defense Aerospace, Inc.

Kellstrom Defense Aerospace, Inc. (KDA) is a respected global leader for defense aircraft sustainment, deploying an experienced team and complete capabilities to solve customer challenges through OEM strategic distribution, component repair services, engineered products, and logistics solutions for military transporters, fighters, and rotary wing platforms. With operations in Camarillo, CA; Miramar, FL; Macon, GA; Chula Vista, CA; Cambridge, UK; South Windsor, AU; Singapore, and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, the KDA team provides support to the United States military and over 60 partnering nations. KDA is committed to compliance, with hundreds of active export licenses and dedicated contract, export, and security personnel.

For more information: http://www.kellstromdefense.com, http://www.c130.com, and http://www.wam-inc.com. Follow @kellstromdef on Twitter.

About Lynden Air Cargo

Lynden Air Cargo operates the largest fleet of L-382 (L-100) in the world and is part of the Lynden family of transportation companies primarily serving Alaska and the Pacific Northwest with service extending throughout the U.S. and internationally. Our fleet of L-382 Hercules aircraft transports everything from groceries to cars within Alaska through scheduled weekly service and oversized cargo worldwide through charter flights. Lynden Air Cargo carries materials and supplies to remote and challenging destinations in the Alaskan Bush and beyond and has been called upon to fly relief missions for some of the world's most devastating disasters. We support customers in the mining, construction and energy industries and have mobilized operations to support startup projects around the globe. Lynden Air Cargo has been a subcontractor for the Department of Defense and is a member of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) program since 1999. Lynden Air Cargo has successfully flown thousands of missions to locations around the world while providing a reliability rating among the top of any CRAF carrier. Over the years, Lynden Air Cargo has had aircraft contracted for weekly scheduled flights, based at Air Force Bases in Yokota, Japan; Ramstein, Germany; and Trenton, New Jersey. In addition, Lynden Air Cargo has operated Department of Defense Air Mobility Command (AMC) expansion missions as needed on an ad hoc trip basis. Our pilots have thousands of hours of flight time, and all of our employees - in the air or on the ground - pride themselves on providing safe, reliable and friendly air cargo service year-round.

For more information please visit http://www.lynden.com/lac or http://www.facebook.com/LyndenInc. Contact: Adam Murray, Vice President of Commercial Operations, charters@lynden.com.

2019 Kellstrom Defense Aerospace, Inc.; All Rights Reserved.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200213005103/en/

Contacts

Kellstrom Defense Aerospace, Inc.Ruth GarciaDirector, Marketing & CommunicationsPR@kellstromdefense.com

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Kellstrom Defense Partners With Lynden Air Cargo to Install the First DFQMS on the L-100 Aircraft - Yahoo Finance

By Chris Forrester

February 14, 2020

A report from Northern Sky Research (NSR) forecasts that over $3.1 billion in cumulative revenues could be generated by 2029 for applications such as satellite life extension, relocation, de-orbiting, salvage, robotics, and space situational awareness. NSRs analysis shows progress of this much-anticipated technology and business as launches of satellite constellations continue, and there is growing concerns and opportunity to service in-orbit infrastructure to more accurately and efficiently manage orbital assets.

The in-orbit servicing (IoS) market stands ready to develop quickly, as Northrop Grummans Mission Extension Vehicle launch in late 2019 kick-starts a flurry of life extension and space tugs in-orbit service technologies. Meanwhile, increasing partnerships between players and future-proofing of satellites, such as OneWebs recent announcement to install a grappling handle on its satellites to help with future de-orbiting, are aiding the commencement of services and their sustainability, said NSR.

GEO satellites were once isolated, but missions once one and done are no longer the only available option, noted Dallas Kasaboski, NSR Senior Analyst and report lead author. Space as the next frontier is increasingly becoming a service environment where demand for greater control of orbital infrastructure, from beginning through end of life, is a reality, he adds.

NSRs analysis of the risks, challenges, players, and opportunity of IoS technology & services, finds that non-GEO satellites will drive 75 per cent of demand. However, Geostationary [demand] will control over 66 per cent of those cumulative revenues generated by 2029, due to higher complexity missions in higher orbits.

BSR said: Once in-orbit demonstration of life extension missions are successful, NSR notes that more complicated applications, such as robotic manipulation and salvage will follow. At the same time, Space Situational Awareness (SSA), newly represented and forecasted in NSRs report, is becoming even more globally recognized and supported.

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Report: Space tugs will develop rapidly | - Advanced Television

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Is the Trump administration interested in authorizing the development of a new nuclear warhead? The U.S. Department of Energys fiscal year 2021 budget request, revealed on Monday, outlines, among other things, a new warhead program known as the W93.

As part of the budget request highlights published by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which is the U.S. Department of Energy agency charged with maintaining the U.S. nuclear arsenal, the W93 warhead program is identified alongside four other older programs as part of the weapons activities budget request. The total budget request for this category of NNSA activities for fiscal year 2021 is $15.6 billion, a 25.2 percent increase over the fiscal year 2020 amount.

The funds will sustain and modernize the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile with five weapons programs, including the B61-12 Life Extension Program, W80-4 Life Extension Program, W88 Alteration 370, W87-1 Modification Program, and the W93 warhead program, the NNSA noted.

The NNSAs budget release describe the W93 warhead program for the first time in its budget release in a single sentence: The W93 warhead program was recently endorsed by the Nuclear Weapons Council and the Deputy Secretary of Defense to support the U.S. Strategic Command-required replacement for the Navys Trident II D5 submarine launched ballistic missile (SLBM).

Analysts like the Federation of American Scientists Hans Kristensen (disclosure: I am affiliated with FAS) have pointed out that the W93 name, which is now public, is likely a new moniker for what was previously known as the Interoperable Warhead-2 and the Next Navy Warhead in the NNSAs July 2019 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan (SSMP).

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In the SSMP, the Next Navy Warhead was slated to enter the studies and engineering phase of development in fiscal year 2024. If the W93 is the same warhead that was envisioned previously, it will deploy on the U.S. Navys next-generation ballistic missile submarines, the Columbia-class, for the entirety of that platforms lifetime.

Whats unclear for now is what kind of warhead the W93 will actually end up being. The United States has not designed any warheads from scratch since the W88, which is the highest-yield option on board the U.S. Navys currently operational Trident II D5 submarine-launched ballistic missiles. The development of the W88 was completed in 1989.

One concern with the W93 designation is that the designation itself suggests something grander than a modification, or mod, like the recently fielded W76-2, which is a primary-only, lower-yield derivative of the W76-1 warhead. Calling the new warhead the W93 may imply an all-new design.

As a corollary of developing a new design, calls to resume nuclear testing might resurface in the United States. The fiscal year 2021 budget is silent on this matter and the Trump administration has not officially suggested that any new warheads might need to be tested, but this would be a major concern.

The United States ceased nuclear testing and entered a self-imposed moratorium on September 23, 1992. The only country to have tested any nuclear weapons in the 21st century is North Korea, which has been heavily criticized by the United States and other countries for doing so.

The Trump administration published a Nuclear Posture Review in 2018 that called for two new nuclear capabilities. The first of these, the W76-2, has been developed and fielded by the U.S. Navy. The second was a sea-launched cruise missile, which has yet to enter production.

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Will the United States Develop a New Type of Nuclear Warhead? - The Diplomat