PERTH (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Valence Industries has officially reopened its Uley graphite mine, in South Australia, and will restart production pending approval by the state government.
The mine, which was placed on care and maintenance in 1993 due to market factors, currently contains about 360 000 t of graphite, in addition to the stockpile which is estimated to contain a further 10 900 t of graphite.
The processing plant has the capacity to produce some 14 000 t/y of graphite.
“Once on line, Valence Industries will be able to supply graphite to its international customers, with the company having already signed multiple memoranda of understanding to supply over 29 000 t/y of graphite over the next two to three years,” said CEO and MD Christopher Darby.
Once regulatory approval was received, the ramp-up of Phase 1 of the operations to full capacity of 14 000 t/y would start. The Phase 2 expansion would see production increase from 14 000 t/y to 50 000 t/y.
The revised feasibility study for the Phase 2 operation was scheduled for release by the end of the year, and it was expected that a capital investment of about A$35-million would be required to fund the openpit operation and a new graphite processing plant.