PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The A$5-billion Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) has advanced three resource projects to the funding due diligence stage, bringing each closer to a possible development decision.

The NAIF initiative was established by the Australian government to provide loans, which could be on concessional terms, to support and encourage infrastructure development in northern Australia.

ASX-listed Technology Metals Australia on Wednesday said that its Gabanintha vanadium project has now advanced to the funding due diligence phase, with the company actively advancing funding and offtake strategies after completing a definitive feasibility study (DFS) earlier this year.

The DFS estimated that Gabanintha would require a capital investment of $318-million to support the 27.9-million-pound-a-year vanadium pentoxide operation with a mine life of 16 years. The project would be the world’s largest primary vanadium producer, once in production.

Fellow-listed Strandline Resources’ Coburn mineral sands project, in Western Australia, has also progressed to the NAIF’s due diligence stage.

Coburn is one of the largest, most advanced and capital-efficient undeveloped mineral sands projects in the world, with Strandline telling shareholders that funding from the NAIF would boost the project’s ability to attract the remaining funding required to develop the asset.

A DFS on Coburn has estimated that the A$257-million project would produce an average of 229 000 t/y of heavy mineral concentrate over an estimated mine life of more than 22 years, generating life-of-mine revenues of A$3.9-billion.

The project’s mine life could be extended by a further 15 years based on the potential production targets already identified, making Coburn a generational project, Strandline said.

Meanwhile, the Butcherbird manganese project, also in Western Australia, has also advanced to the NAIF due diligence phase, as owner Element 25 works to complete a prefeasibility study.

A 2018 scoping study of the Butcherbird project was focused on an openpit development, and based on a mineral resource of 180.8-million tonnes, at 10.8% manganese in the inferred and indicated categories. The study confirmed that the Butcherbird project had the potential to become a low operating cost producer with modest capital requirements, and simple logistics.

“In parallel with a prefeasibility study, Element 25 is also actively working on funding solutions for the project. The NAIF’s decision to progress to due diligence stage is a positive result and an important consideration as the company looks to complete its prefeasibility study and implement a funding solution,” said MD Justin Brown.