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Australian rare earths producer starts production

RARE EARTH Northern Minerals reports that about 1 000 t of ore has been crushed and first ore has been processed through the beneficiation plant

RARE EARTH Northern Minerals reports that about 1 000 t of ore has been crushed and first ore has been processed through the beneficiation plant

Photo by Bloomberg

10th August 2018

     

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The commissioning process of Australian heavy rare earths producer Northern Minerals’ Browns Range rare earths project is progressing well, with various parts of the pilot process plant, in both the beneficiation plant and the hydrometallurgical plant, having been commissioned as part of the project in northern Western Australia.

The pilot process plant was expected to be mechanically completed at the end of last month.

“The development of the Browns Range project is the result of years of blood, sweat and tears by an extremely talented and dedicated team from Northern Minerals, engineering company Sinosteel, construction engineering company Primero Group and other contractors,” says Northern Minerals MD and CEO George Bauk.

He says Northern Minerals is on the cusp of a fundamental shift in perceptions as the company transitions from an explorer to a quality supplier of essential ingredients to the electric vehicle evolution.

Last month, the company reported that about 1 000 t of ore has been crushed and first ore has been processed through the beneficiation plant with processing through the circuit to continue.

Meanwhile, commissioning and testwork have started in the hydrometallurgical plant through the concentrate dryer and sulphation bake kiln circuits. The balance of the hydrometallurgical plant will be brought on line as baked material becomes available.

As part of this process, Northern Minerals reported that the on-site laboratory has produced rare-earth carbonate as part of the testwork in the commissioning process. This is the precursor to export quality product that is being produced.

The company currently anticipates the first export of rare-earth carbonate to be shipped during the September quarter.

The research and development phase for the pilot plant project started in June and is expected to take up to three years. During this time, the company will investigate the technical and economic feasibility of the proposed larger scale project.

Further, a conceptual design for ore sorting at Browns Range has been completed following promising first-stage testwork at two ore sorting vendors. Bulk samples from the Wolverine and Gambit West ore stockpiles have been collected, screened and split in preparation for the next stage of sorting testwork. The testwork was expected to start last month.

The Browns Range project is positioned to become the first significant dysprosium producer outside China, according to the company.

Following a review in 2016, Northern Minerals developed a new business plan to support the project’s pathway to production. The plan separates the project into three development stages and allows for Northern Minerals to test the process and market the mixed rare-earth carbonate product, then develop the project to bankable feasibility study level and finally build the full-scale operation.

The pilot plant is expected to produce 573 000 kg of mixed heavy rare-earth carbonate containing terbium and dysprosium as revenue products over a three-year period, Mining Weekly reported in May.

The Browns Range project was officially opened by the Australian Minister for Regional Development, Agriculture and Food Alannah MacTiernan last month.

Edited by Mia Breytenbach
Creamer Media Deputy Editor: Features

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