Name of the Project
Dubbo zirconium/niobium/hafnium and rare earths project.

Location
The project is located 25 km south of Dubbo, in central western New South Wales, Australia.

Client
Alkane Resources.

Project Description
The Dubbo project is a large inground polymetallic resource of zirconium, hafnium, niobium, tantalum, yttrium and rare-earth elements. It has an 18.9-million-tonne mineral ore reserve and a 75.18-million-tonne mineral ore resource.

An engineering and financials review of the project has confirmed the project as technically sound and financially viable.

At full capacity, the Dubbo project mineral processing plant will be capable of receiving one-million tonnes a year of crushed ore, which will be processed using sulphuric acid leach and solvent-extraction recovery to recover zirconium, hafnium, niobium and rare-earth products.

The project could be successfully implemented as a single one-million-tonne-a-year plant (base case) or in two stages of 500 000 t/y (staged build).

The staged build concept is centred around phased construction, and the development of a ‘repeatable’ reduced capacity train that can be replicated to expand plant capacity. To the greatest extent possible, each successive train is a copy of the initial plant. The main aim of this staged construction strategy is the reduction of initial capital cost, bringing the project into production with a lower initial commitment. Later expansion becomes a matter of reproducing the initial train as needed, opening a pathway to rapid development and expansion to one-million-tonne-a-year capacity (and potentially beyond), with relative speed and without substantial re-engineering

Mining of the ore deposit will be undertaken in a single openpit, using drill-and-blast methods to fragment material that will be transported to the run-of-mine pad for crushing and grinding. About 19-million tonnes a year of ore will be extracted at a rate of one-million tonnes a year.

The project has a 20-year mine life at a one-million-tonne-a-year feed rate.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
In the base case, the project has an estimated pretax net present value (NPV), at an 8% discount rate, of A$1.24-billion and an estimated internal rate of return (IRR) of 17.5%.

In the staged build, the project has an NPV, at an 8% discount rate of A$909-million and an IRR of 16.1%.

Value
The project will cost about A$1.3-billion in the base case scenario. In the staged build, Stage 1 is estimated at A$808-million and Stage 2 A$692-million.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
The final decision is dependent on customer demand, securing adequate funding for development of the project and strategic partner requirements.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Alkane Resources, tel +61 8 9227 5677 or email mail@alkane.com.au.