Name and Location
Panda Hill niobium project, Tanzania.

Client
Cradle Resources.

Project Description
The scoping study completed on the Panda Hill project has indicated the potential for a highly economic project, generating substantial cash flow at current niobium prices for a relatively low capital outlay. The mineral resource estimate used for the study totalled 81.8-million tonnes at 0.52% niobium pentoxide (Nb₂O₅) for 423 000 t of contained Nb2O5, with 76.4-million tonnes at 0.51% Nb₂O₅ of inferred material and 5.4-million tonnes at 0.62% Nb₂O₅ of indicated material.

The base case of the scoping study envisages a two-million-tonne-a-year operation, with a life-of-mine of about 28 years, producing about 4.8-million kilograms of niobium a year, based on a mine schedule that prioritises the indicated resource for plant feed.

A staged development, which will increase the mill throughput from an initial one-million tonnes a year to 2.3-million tonnes a year, could deliver between 2.6-million and 5.4-million kilograms of niobium a year over a 27-year mine life.

Value
The base case is estimated at $185-million.

The staged case will cost about $125-million to develop.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Cradle announced in February this year that the second phase of the flotation testwork programme being carried out as part of the prefeasibility study at SGS Canada had been completed.

While the first-phase programme focused on testing each of the major material types identified in the deposit through a variety of different flotation processes, work during the second phase focused on optimising the selected flowsheet identified in the first phase – the direct flotation process. This work focused on:
• reagent addition reduction,
• simplification of the flotation reagent suite and
• concentrate quality, specifically silicate rejection.
The results again confirmed the results of  previous work, where recoveries of between 50% and 70% were achieved for materials of varying levels of oxidation.

The next phase of the metallurgical testwork programme is currently under way and will consist of a variability study, based on the optimised flowsheet identified in the work reported above and samples collected across the length and depth of the latest optimised pit shell. This phase of work will take about two to three months to complete and will be reported as part of the feasibility study.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
MDM Engineering Group (PFS).

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Cradle Resources, tel +61 8 9389 2000, fax +61 8 9389 2099 or email admin@cradleresources.com.au.
MDM Engineering Group, tel +27 11 993 4300, fax +27 11 886 9306 or email info@mdm-engineering.com.