Name and Location
Nolans rare earths project, Northern Territory and South Australia, Australia.

Client
Arafura Resources.

Project Description
The Nolans project comprises operations at two sites in Australia – the Nolans Bore mine, in the Northern Territory, and the Whyalla rare earths complex, in South Australia.

The mineral resource estimate for Nolans Bore is currently 47-million tonnes grading 2.6% rare-earth oxide (REO) for 1.2-million tonnes of contained REO. Fifty four per cent of these resources are classified as measured and indicated and they have been earmarked for conversion to ore reserves. Nolans Bore is highly enriched in neodymium, which is one of the most sought-after and valuable rare earths.

The Nolans Bore resource is amenable to low-cost opencut mining and standard beneficiation techniques and will be mined using selective opencut methods. Opencut mining will be conducted using conventional blast, shovel and truck techniques to supply material to the run-of-mine pad for feeding into an on-site concentrator, comprising a comminution circuit and beneficiation circuits.

Interim pit optimisation studies show that more than twenty years of production is possible, based on measured and indicated resources alone, with an indicative mine life of more than 30 years assuming that the entire resource, as currently defined, can be processed.

Value
Rare earths developer Arafura Resources has identified another A$400-million in cost savings to develop its Nolans project, taking the 2012 estimate of A$1.9-billion to A$1.5-billion.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
A review of the project’s capital expenditure and flow sheet has identified major cost savings, with a revised design at the rare earth intermediate plant resulting in the replacement of hydrochloric acid with sulphuric acid in the preleach system.

The decision to transfer the rare earth separation plant alongside an established chemical precinct has also removed the need to construct a dedicated chlor-alkali plant.

The company is reviewing and refining the infrastructure capital costs for the mine, concentrator and the rare earths intermediate plant.

In 2013, Arafura announced plans to cut about A$1-billion from the price tag of its proposed Nolans project through a range of initiatives. The miner saved A$400-million by abandoning plans for a rare earths complex in South Australia, cancelling a land sale agreement with OneSteel.

The company has, to date, conducted several visits to international sites that have been identified through a desktop study as ideal locations for the rare earth separation plant.

Several sites have been shortlisted and expanded discussions will be undertaken.

Meanwhile, Arafura reports that operating cost estimates for the Nolans project have also benefited from the process improvements, plant reconfigurations and the proposed relocation of the rare earth complex.

Operating expenditure has decreased by about 17% from A$20.55 to A$17.10/kg of rare-earth oxide.

Arafura was targeting a production of 20 000 t/y of REO at the Nolans project over a life-of-mine of 20 years.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Aecom Australia (environmental-impact studies); Lycopodium, Parsons Brinckerhoff and Amec Minproc (engineering study manager for bankable feasibility study).

On Budget and on Time?
The completion of the BFS has been delayed until at least the third quarter of 2013.

Contact Details for Project Information
Amec, Brittni Baum, tel +61 8 9347 4777 or email brittni.baum@amec.com; or Jane Gospel, tel +44 20 75 39 1082 or email jane.gospel@amec.com.
Arafura Resources CEO Steve Ward, tel +61 8 6210 7666, fax +61 8 6210 7966 or email arafura@arafuraresources.com.au.
Lycopodium, tel +61 8 6210 5222 or email limited@lycopodium.com.au.
Parsons Brinckerhoff communications manager Elaine Hill, tel +61 7 3854 6868 or email e1hill@pb.com.au.