DRA to conduct feasibility study for Guinea graphite project

19th September 2018 By: Schalk Burger - Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

Engineering services multinational DRA has been appointed to conduct the feasibility study for Canada-based Guinea-focused mining company SRG’s Lola graphite project, in Guinea.

DRA said in a statement on Wednesday that the project will be executed through the DRA Met-Chem office, in Montreal, with input from other DRA offices across the globe.

DRA has been involved in the Lola project since the early stages and previously completed two mineral resource estimates and a preliminary economic assessment (PEA).

It has also provided extensive support through a range of trade-off studies, as well as the management of the metallurgical test work and field studies (geotechnical and hydrogeology).

“We look forward to drawing upon our experience in Africa to deliver value to SRG,” said DRA mining, geology and Met-Chem operations senior VP Daniel Gagnon.

SRG, in a statement on Monday, said the positive outcome of the PEA, along with the strong fundamentals for graphite and energy metals, provides confidence in the prospects of the Lola graphite project.

To complement DRA, SRG has also contracted serval consultants with specific competencies related to the feasibility study. In many cases, fieldwork has already begun and is ongoing, it added.

DRA’s Silvia Del Carpio has been nominated project manager and the company is well recognised for its capabilities in mining and mineral processing. It has a talented team of engineering, technical and project management personnel with relevant project experience in North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa and India, SRG said.

Further, British logistics firm Remote Site Logistics was selected to complete the study and implementation of construction and operations importation along with concentrate export logistics.

SGS Canada was selected for the metallurgy test work, flowsheet validation, piloting test work and for bulk concentrate production.

SGS Canada graphite specialist Oliver Peters is responsible for the feasibility test work for the Lola graphite project.

South African environmental and mining waste management firm Epoch Resources was selected for the design of the tailing storage facility. Its mandate is to assess the terrain and find a suitable location and appropriate method for tailings disposal.

Following this assessment, it will provide the detailed design of the tailings pond.

Mine Design Engineering provides services in geomechanics to assist those in the mining and civil engineering industries. Their first mandate is to design and supervise a soil and rock sampling campaign to determine the stability of the future mine walls.

Additionally, exploration and mining specialist firm Sahara Natural Resources was selected for both geotechnical fieldwork and studies for civil engineering and hydrogeology. Its mandate is to evaluate the ground stability and properties at the selected plant location, as well as to understand the underground water systems to support mine design, SRG concluded in its statement on Monday.

The Lola graphite occurrence has a prospective surface outline of 3.22 km2 of continuous graphitic gneiss, which SRG says is one of the largest graphitic surface areas in the world.