Name of the Project
Siviour graphite project.
Location
The project is located on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula.
Project Owner/s
Renascor Resources.
Project Description
Renascor has adopted an optimised development plant for the Siviour graphite project, based on the mineral resource and reserve estimate first reported in April 2019.
The project has total mineral resources estimated at 87.4-million tonnes grading 7.5% total graphitic carbon (TGC) for 6.6-million tonnes of contained graphite. Total total proven and probable reserves are estimated at 45.2-million tonnes grading 7.9% TGC for 3.6-million tonnes of contained graphite.
The revised plan is based on a two-stage approach to achieve production of up to 145 000 t/y through the staged construction of two substantially similar-sized processing plants. The plan builds on the large-scale, 117 000 t/y production case considered in the Siviour prefeasibility study (PFS), completed in March 2018, by staging production through the construction of two substantially identical processing plants. Each plant will have an ore throughput capacity of 825 000 t/y to achieve a substantially similar yearly production rate as the large-scale 1.65-million-tonne-a-year processing plant considered in the large-scale case from the PFS. The project has an estimated life-of-mine of 40 years.
Potential Job Creation
Not stated.
Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an after-tax net present value, at a 10% discount rate, of A$435-million and an internal rate of return of 40%, with a payback of 3.7 years.
Capital Expenditure
Capital expenditure is estimated at A$108-million for Stage 1 and A$77-million in Stage 2.
Planned Start/End Date
Renascor Resources is targeting first graphite by the second half of 2021.
Latest Developments
A definitive feasibility study (DFS) for the Siviour graphite project is expected soon. The completion of the DFS will assist Renascor in completing financing negotiations.
The DFS is based on an optimised development plan, which investigated increasing the 22 800 t/y Stage 1 production nearly four-fold to 83 400 t/y while providing for the construction of a similar sized processing plant in Stage 2 for a combined production rate of 145 000 t/y of graphite concentrate.
“Our work to date indicates that Siviour’s favourable geology and location will permit us to produce high-quality graphite concentrates at amongst the lowest cost of any graphite development globally,” Renascor MD David Christensen has said.
Early indications from the DFS show that operating costs will likely be less than $400/t.
The company currently has an in-principle agreement from the Dutch export credit agency Atradius Dutch State Business for up to 60% of the projected capital expenditure for the Stage 1 operation, while the remaining 40% of the capital costs for the Siviour project will be funded either through equity from existing shareholders, or a strategic investor.
Christensen has also raised the possibility of a partner for its proposed downstream spherical graphite project, near Siviour.
Key Contracts and Suppliers
Optiro (mineral resource estimate); Goudie Hall Consulting (metallurgical testwork); Optima Consulting and Contracting (mining and mine design); Wave International (process infrastructure); Groundwater Science (hydrogeology); JBS&G Australia (environmental permitting); George Wilby (logistics); Arup (desalination plant and infrastructure); and BurnVoir Corporate Finance (financial analysis).
On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.
Contact Details for Project Information
Renascor Resources, tel +61 8 8363 6989 or email info@renascor.com.au.