Alba Mineral Resources (AIM:ALBA) has commissioned mineral sands specialists IHC Robbins to carry out comprehensive metallurgical process development and test work programme at its 100% owned Thule Black Sands (“TBS”) Project in northern Greenland.
The mineral exploration and development group said the programme is designed to confirm the ilmenite products to be produced from TBS and to provide product samples for potential customers and offtake partners.
“This programme is therefore a key step in the process of confirming TBS as a stand-alone development project in its own right and securing the capital to fast-track the project through the development phase,” commented Alba’s Executive Chairman, George Frangeskides.
The preliminary feasibility phase will include the following:
• Sample characterisation as per drill data analyses
• Confirmation of conceptual metallurgical process and evaluation of alternative process options and equipment using full-scale or scale-able equipment
• Development of balanced Process Flow Diagrams
• Production of potential ilmenite product and provision of ilmenite product samples to potential consumers for testing
• Provision of recovery calculations, predictions and factors based on X-ray Flourescence and mineralogical analyses
Figure 1: IHC Robbins Process Plant to be employed in the TBS Process
Development Programme (Source:IHC Robbins).
Testwork results from the maiden drilling campaign across the Thule Black Sands Project confirmed a combined mineralised strike length of around 10 km. The maiden Mineral Resource Estimate by IHC Robbins reported an inferred resource of 19.m tonnes at 43.6% Total Heavy Mineral, an in-situ Ilmenite grade of 8.9%, and a contained ilmenite of 1.7m tonnes.
Alba said the potential exists to substantially increase the resource tonnage by drilling through the permafrost. It said this will be the focus of a drilling programme designed for next year.
Shares in Alba Mineral Resources have increased significantly in the past three months from 0.07p to close at 0.38p during Wednesday afternoon trading.
The Company added that the offshore mineralisation adjacent to the active beaches also offer an opportunity to materially increase the overall size of the deposit.
“Together with our plans to substantially increase resource tonnes next year by drilling at depth – remembering that the existing, already significant, 19m tonne resource is only modelled down to the first 1m, this being the permafrost horizon – the future looks very bright for TBS,” added Frangeskides.
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