Source: Eurasia Capital               Date: August 17, 2011

Development at the Oyu Tolgoi mining site began last month. Ivanhoe Mines may have cause to celebrate as it reported favorable business along with the beginning of its operation's pre-stripping phase.

The mining corporation earned USD 600,000 in its June quarter, compared to its USD 30 million loss in the same quarter last year. Additionally, the company plans to finalize and sign a USD 4 billion project finance package for the development of Oyu Tolgoi by the end of the year.

“A term sheet outlining the main terms and conditions common to all lenders is well advanced,” the company reported, adding that it expected to have access to a USD 1.8 billion interim funding facility from Rio Tinto as bridge financing until the debt package was finalized.

The Oyu Tolgoi mine is expected to produce more than 1.2 billion pounds of copper and 650 000 ounces of gold a year in its first ten years of operation. By its seventh year, the mine would produce around 1.7 billion pounds of copper and one-million ounces of gold for the remainder of the project's life. The project was 33% complete, said the company.