Northland Signs Logistics Agreement with Green Cargo
LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG -- (Marketwire) -- 04/24/12 -- Northland Resources S.A. (TSX: NAU)(FRANKFURT: NPK)(OSLO: NAUR) ("Northland" or the "Company") announces that its subsidiary, Northland Logistics AB, has signed an agreement with Green Cargo AB ("Green Cargo") covering the operation of the locomotives that will run from the Pitkajarvi transloading terminal to the Port of Narvik.
During the first quarter of 2013, Northland will start transporting its high quality iron ore concentrate from the Tapuli mine in Kaunisvaara to the Port of Narvik for further shipment to end customers. The iron ore concentrate will be trucked the first 150 km to the Pitkajarvi transloading terminal. At Pitkajarvi, the concentrate will be reloaded onto rail wagons. Green Cargo has been chosen to operate the locomotives that will take the rail wagons the final 226 km to Narvik. Green Cargo will also operate the switches.
"We are very happy to sign this agreement with Green Cargo, and thus complete the logistics chain from Kaunisvaara to Narvik," said Karl-Axel Waplan, President and CEO of Northland. "Green Cargo has a strong position in the region and is experienced in handling iron ore. Together with our other logistics partners, Peab AB, Savage Services Corporation and Grieg Logistics AS, we now have a strong team that will ensure the start of the transportation of our high quality iron ore concentrate at the beginning of 2013."
The agreement will be in effect for five years, beginning January 2013, and is valued at approximately USD 120 million. At full production, Green Cargo will have the ability to operate 4 trains a day on the Pitkajarvi-Narvik route and each train will consist of 40 rail wagons.
"We have now started to recruit locomotive drivers and personnel for operating the train switches in Sweden as well as in Norway. We will use electrical locomotives, specially adapted for iron ore transportation, for the majority of the distance and diesel locomotives for the switches," said Mikael Stohr, President and CEO of Green Cargo.
Karl-Axel Waplan, President & CEO
Northland Resources S.A
Northland is a development-stage mining company with a portfolio of iron ore projects in northern Sweden and Finland. The Company's Kaunisvaara Project will exploit two magnetite iron ore deposits in Sweden. The process is expected to yield a high-grade, high-quality magnetite iron concentrate. The construction of the Kaunisvaara project is well underway and production is planned to start in the fourth quarter of 2012. Northland has entered into industrial off-take contracts for the entire production from Kaunisvaara. The Company is also preparing a Definitive Feasibility Study for its Hannukainen Iron Oxide Copper Gold Project in Kolari, northern Finland.
Green Cargo is a logistical company focusing on railway transportation. It handles 60 per cent of all Swedish freight trains as well as reaching the rest of Europe through a network of partnerships. Green Cargo is 100% owned by the Swedish government and has about 2,800 employees. Net sales for 2011 were about SEK 6.4 billion.
Contacts:
Northland Resources S.A.
Karl-Axel Waplan
President and CEO
+46 705 104 239
Northland Resources S.A.
Anders Antonsson
Vice President Investor Relations
+46 709 994 970
Northland Resources S.A.
Willy Sundling
Project Manager Logistics
+46 705 533 883
Northland Resources S.A.
Marguerite Manshreck-Head
Investors Relations, Canada
+1 647 224 7882
www.northland.eu