JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed lithium developer Altura Mining has agreed to the terms of a native title agreement (NTA) with the Njamal People, the traditional owners of the land at Altura’s 100%-owned Pilgangoora lithium project, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
The signing of the NTA was the final prerequisite approval to allow for the grant of the two mining leases covering Altura’s planned development of the lithium project.
This agreement also reflected the professional manner in which the parties had directed resources to produce an outcome that had set the baseline for the continued development of the relationship between both groups, the company noted in a press statement on Thursday.
“Altura is now well-positioned to deliver the project in line with the previously disclosed aggressive timeframe, with key factors such as a balance sheet, an amenable resource, a defined process flow sheet, a significant binding offtake and a clear strategy to market,” the company said.
Pilgangoora was recognised as an advanced-stage, near-term lithium project, with mining to be conducted by openpit methods. Altura planned an aggressive project delivery schedule, with production of first concentrate due in the third quarter of 2017.
A processing facility was planned with a feed capacity of 1.4-million tons a year, producing a spodumene concentrate grading about 6% lithium oxide.
As Altura fast-tracked the project to production in 2017, the company’s updates on the recent activities at the project included last month’s awarding of the definitive feasibility study process design to multidisciplinary global engineering group DRA; the mobilisation of three drill rigs for the expansion of resources and reserves; the identification of eight prospective lithium target areas within the existing tenement package; as well as four tons of mineralised core for process flow optimisation testwork, with significant improvements achieved, including the adoption of high-pressure grinding roll technology in the crushing circuit.
Developments also included a water exploration drilling programme culminating in several production bores being identified and tested, agreements reached with the local authority to upgrade the haul road, with design of the haul road having started, and the issuing of power plant tenders.
Altura had also prepared a mining proposal for submission to the Australian Department of Mines and Petroleum this month.
In April, the company had signed its binding offtake agreement over Pilgangoora with China’s Lionenergy. Under the terms of the offtake agreement, Lionenergy would take a minimum of 100 000 t/y of spodumene concentrate for an initial five years, with any extensions to this date to be negotiated between the two companies, while the companies would also negotiate any additional offtake tonnage in excess of the 100 000 t/y.