Name and Location
Panda Hill niobium project, Tanzania.

Client
Panda Hill Tanzania, in which Cradle Resources has a 50% stake.

Project Description
Cradle has completed its definitive feasibility study (DFS) on the Panda Hill niobium project, in Tanzania. The study has focused on producing on average of 5 400 t/y of niobium as ferroniobium over the life-of-mine, with a 1.3-million tonne-a-year concentrator initially operating for four years and then expanding to 2.6-million tonnes a year in Year 5, and associated infrastructure treating ore from an opencut mine.

The total mine life is 30 years, with aggregate throughput being 72.4-million tonnes of ore at a strip ratio of 1.5:1.
The mine will comprise an openpit operation using conventional back-hoe-type excavators loading ore and waste onto a fleet of 90 t haul trucks. Drill and blast will be required and a bench height of 5 m is envisaged with loading on 2 × 2.5 m flitches. Mining will be undertaken by a mining contractor.
The production schedule has been developed to target only the carbonatite-type mineralogy, with an average grade of 0.68% niobium pentoxide in the first ten years of production, using only measured and indicated resources in these years.

The flowsheet developed for the processing of the Panda Hill material comprises single-stage crushing of run-of-mine, two-stage milling (semiautogenous and ball), desliming, pyrite flotation and magnetic separation, carbonite flotation, desliming/dewatering, niobium flotation, pyrite flotation and magnetic separation, two-stage concentrate leach (acid and caustic), concentrate dryer, ferroniobium conversion and product crushing and packaging.

The plant has been sized initially for 1.3-million tonnes a year of mill feed to reduce upfront capital expenditure (capex) and enable a more gradual entry into the market.
The planned expansion to 2.6-million tonnes a year after the fourth year of production involves the construction of a second milling and flotation train, together with the expansion of the leaching and converter stages. Conversion from an on-site power plant to grid power is included in the expansion.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of $796-million and an internal rate of return of 32% at the decision to mine.

Value
Initial capex is estimated at $196-million.
Waste rock dumps, intermediate stock-piles, a haul road, a run-of-mine pad and associated mining infrastructure have been included in the capital cost.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Cradle announced the maiden ore reserve estimate for the Panda Hill project in June.
The ore reserve assumes that the project starts at a throughput of 1.3-million tonnes a year and is ramped up to 2.6-million tonnes a year after Year 4 of production and is based on the mine designs generated from the first three pushbacks defined in the DFS.
Proven and probable ore reserves have been estimated at 20.6-million tonnes, grading at 0.68% niobium pentoxide.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Too early to state.

Contact Details for Project Information
Cradle Resources, tel +61 8 9389 2000, fax +61 8 9389 2099 or email admin@cradleresources.com.au.