Ivernia West has said it expects to reach full production at its lead/ zinc mine at Lisheen, Co Tipperary, in the second half of the year.

Some 310,000 tonnes of ore were produced between the beginning of production at the mine last September and the end of February this year, with 158,000 tonnes mined during the last four months of 1999.

Ivernia and international mining group Anglo American jointly own the Lisheen mine, which currently employs 480 people, although this is expected to drop to around 300 when the contractors on site have finished their work.

Project development on the mine should be completed in the second half of this year and within the $280.5 million (€288 million) budget, the company said.

Ivernia reported a loss last year of £1 million (€1.27 million) or 0.98p per share, after posting a profit of £63,702 the previous year.

It attributed the loss to a net charge of £1.02 million, resulting from changes in accounting policies for exploration, and general and administrative expenditures.

Meanwhile, Ivernia said its investment in the Magellan project, near Wiluna in western Australia, was proceeding to plan and a feasibility study would be finalised shortly.

In Australia, an initial exploration programme by Ivernia and its partner, Polymetals Australia Pty., on the Wodcutters lead/zinc mine near Darwin intersected significant lead and silver mineralisation.

Follow-up exploration in this area would begin in the second quarter of the year.

In the US, Ivernia is accumulating a significant number of exploration leases in western Kentucky, where the potential for zinc de posits has never been tested fully. An exploration programme is planned in the near future.

The 1999 results show that capital expenditure last year totalled £45.4 million on additions to mine development, property, plant and equipment for the Lisheen project.

Development expenditure on the Magellan and other projects came to £1.35 million, while exploration spending totalled £540,000.