PERTH (miningweekly.com) – A scoping study on the Siviour graphite deposit, in South Australia, has estimated that the project could produce some 123 000 t/y of graphite concentrate over a 20-year mine life.
ASX-listed Renascor Resources on Tuesday noted that the project would require a capital investment of some A$144-million, with the 1.65-million-tonne-a-year operation expected to have an after-tax net present value of A$551-million and an internal rate of return of 59%.
Renascor MD David Christensen told delegates at the Paydirt South Australian Resources and Energy Investment Conference, in Adelaide, that the targeted production cost of A$450/t was the lowest in the world, with the company’s drilling since 2015 already quadrupling the Siviour project’s inventory with substantial upside still available from undrilled areas.
“This combination of factors elevates Siviour into a globally significant future producer as the global supply chain is looking to diversify from reliance on mainstay producer, China, to high quality deliveries from low risk sovereign sources such as South Australia,” Christensen said.
Renascor was now targeting the completion of feasibility studies in the second half of 2018, with construction targeted for completion in the first half of 2020.
Subject to funding and relevant approvals, the Siviour project could start production in 2020.