JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The environmental approval for what is potentially the Eucla basin in Western Australia’s largest undeveloped zircon project is expected by the end of next month.
ASX-listed Diatreme Resources reported on Monday that Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) had issued draft conditions relating to its Cyclone zircon project’s environmental approvals.
Diatreme subsidiary Lost Sands had five working days from May 20 to comment on the draft report, following which the EPA would prepare a final report for the Western Australian Environment Minister for the grant of the licence.
“Project environmental approval will mark the final step in our flagship project’s derisking process, which has included securing an agreement with the traditional owners, the award of a mining lease, identification of suitable water supplies and the expansion of the project’s projected mine life following the acquisition of the adjacent Cyclone extended heavy mineral resource,” said CEO Neil McIntyre.
In December, Diatreme announced a significantly increased reserve estimate for the Cyclone project of 140-million tonnes, at 2.5% heavy minerals, containing 3.5-million tonnes of heavy minerals with one-million tonnes of zircon.
A definitive feasibility study is under way, after a prefeasibility study (PFS) in 2012 delivered positive results.
The PFS estimated that the $223-million Cyclone project could mine ore at a rate of ten-million tonnes a year for ten years, yielding about 147 000 t/y of zircon-rich heavy mineral concentrate. Its zircon production was estimated to be 65 000 t/y.
The PFS returned a net present value of $194-million and an internal rate of return of 32%, with a payback period of 2.1 years.
Edited by: Creamer Media Reporter
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