Ore struck to trial in Perth Greenvale at centre of $ 500m plan
A TRIAL mining program on a scandium, cobalt and nickel project has begun at Greenvale, which proponents say could be the start of a $ 500 million technology metals industry.
Listed Perth- based development company Australian Mines Ltd is conducting the trial and is midway through a bankable feasibility study into the Sconi Project.
About 20 tonnes of ore is being mined and transported to a small processing plant at Perth being built to model a larger 750,000- tonne- a- year facility proposed to be developed in the Greenvale area.
If it proceeds, a processing plant costing up to $ 500 million could be developed, most likely at Greenvale or two other sites near the former nickel mining town.
Australian Mines managing director Benjamin Bell said the plant would employ 300 to 350 people with a workforce drawn from Greenvale and the surrounding region.
The company expects to produce up to 160kg of battery- grade nickel sulphate, 20kg of commercial grade cobalt sulphate and 5kg of scandium oxide from the trial ore.
The company is focused on producing the sulphates to feed the emerging battery market for electric vehicles with the scandium as a lucrative byproduct for alloys.
Mr Bell said the demand for samples by battery and technology metal manufacturers had been so high the company planned to expand the trial to satisfy additional requests.
“Ore from Sconi has previously been delivered to a demonstration plant site in Welshpool for piloting purposes, while key components of the demonstration- sized plant continue to be delivered and installed ahead of a largerscale run in the December quarter,” Mr Bell said.
“Our recently appointed chief operating officer Tim Maclean has been on the ground at Sconi supervising the trial mining operation and the logistics around delivering the planned 20 tonnes of ore, while I have been in Asia and Europe advancing offtake discussions with nine separate interested parties.
“These discussions are ongoing with many subject to the receipt of samples from the current trial … at Sconi.”
Australian Mines is buying the Sconi project for $ 10 million from previous proponent Metallica Minerals.
It will produce scandium used in alloys for vehicles and aircraft and cobalt and nickel sulphates used to make batteries.
Mr Bell said they would look to partner with offtake partners as well as raise debt funding from banks.
Australian Mines is building a $ 2 million demonstrationscale processing plant in Perth as a model for the proposed 750,000 tonnes a year plant.
Business Daily: p46- 47