Greenland Minerals and Energy (ASX: GGG) has completed the key process engineering design under the Feasibility Study for its Kvanefjeld multi-element project in Greenland.
Metallurgical flowsheets for both the mineral concentrator and the refinery have now been finalised and the company will now focus on reducing the risk of the refinery flowsheet with continuous pilot plant testwork.
This follows the completion of large‐scale, continuous testwork programs to extract rare earth elements and uranium from mineral concentrates, and produce marketable products.
Previous work had demonstrated that the non-refractory nature of the Kvanefjeld ore minerals allows for the use of simple, atmospheric acid leach circuits without requiring complex high-temperature acid back or caustic cracking processes that are required in many rare earth operations.
This has produced a mixed rare earth carbonate intermediate product that contains 94% rare earth oxide with 14.75% of this being the more valuable heavy rare earths.
*Kvanefjeld Refining Circuit*
The Kvanefjeld refinery circuit consists of an atmospheric leaching stage that utilises simple mechanical equipment, which will result in lower costs compared to the complex, high‐temperature ‘mineral cracking’ processes required in other rare earth element projects.
This uses simple equipment and chemistry to:
- Effectively leach both rare earth elements and uranium from the mineral concentrate with a sulphuric acid leach under atmospheric conditions;
- Creates a natural division between the steps to the recovery of REE and uranium; and
- Allows for the effective management of impurities in the leach stream.
The uranium is recovered from the leach solution using conventional solvent extraction technology which is applied in most uranium mines in the world, and is, therefore, of low technical risk.
The rare earths are then recovered in a conventional manner to produce a mixed rare earth carbonate.
*Recent Testwork*
Recent testwork involving a weak acid leach test conducted over 100 hours on 20 kilograms of mineral concentrate had demonstrated that the silica content of the Kvanefjeld ore minerals cab be effectively managed throughout the leach process on the REE‐U mineral concentrates from
This is important as the key ore minerals at Kvanefjeld are phospho‐silicate minerals, and the management of silica is essential to an effective leaching process.
The testwork program also demonstrated that high extractions of rare earth elements and uranium can be readily achieved with the weak acid leaching stage only, owing to the nonrefractory nature of the value minerals.
A pregnant leach solution containing uranium can be produced which is free of solids providing a suitable feed to uranium solvent extraction.
This is achieved using an optimised combination of flocculating chemicals and standard thickeners.
Rare earth elements are also effectively leached from the minerals, but then react to form sulphate salts that remain with the residue, thereby creating a clean separation from the uranium via liquid‐solid separation.
*Kvanefjeld Project
*
Greenland Minerals has claim to the world’s largest rare earth resources, and one of world’s larger uranium resources at the Kvanefjeld Project, which has an overall resource inventory of 956 million tonnes containing 575 million pounds of U3O8, 10.33 million tonnes of total rare earth oxides and 2.25 million tonnes of zinc.
This has the potential to rival BHP Billiton’s Olympic Dam project in South Australia, with sufficient Resources to sustain a mine life of more than 50 years.
Notably, the unique rare earth and uranium‐bearing minerals at Kvanefjeld can be effectively beneficiated into a lowmass, high value concentrate, then leached with conventional acidic solutions under atmospheric conditions to achieve particularly high extraction levels of both heavy rare earths and uranium.
Kvanefjeld is strategically located between North American and European markets at a lower latitude than long established mining regions of Alaska and northern Canada while the Fjord system in south Greenland provides direct shipping access to project area, year round.
An international airport is located 35 kilometres away, and a nearby lake system has been positively evaluated for hydroelectric power.
A Mine and Concentrator Study released in March indicated that the initial 3 million tonne per annum project will generate a pre‐tax, ungeared internal rate of return of 32% and a cash payback period of three years, based on long term prices of US$70 per pound U3O8 and US$23 per kilogram total rare earth oxides (TREO).
The company is also a key participant in European Unions’ EURARE Project, which will provide up to €375,000 toward metallurgical studies and logistical costs as well as benefit from collaborative research programs.
*Rare Earths demand*
Prices for critical rare earth elements had stabilised and started rising towards the later part of the June 2013 quarter after several quarters of price retreat.
These are important to energy efficient technologies and are forecast to be in severely short supply in the near to mid‐term.
The price increases are in general alignment with market expectations that highlight ongoing supply issues for the high‐demand heavy rare earths, along with the light rare earths neodymium and praseodymium which are important to the magnet sector.
*Greenland Government support*
Notably, Greenland’s parliament has voted to repeal its zero-tolerance uranium policy, paving the way for the company to move into permitting and towards mine development.
This allows the country to exploit its abundant resources of uranium in its south, placing it on the path towards becoming a uranium producer.
The same resources are hosted within the northern Ilimaussaq Complex and form the basis of the Kvanefjeld project.
*Analysis*
Greenland Minerals and Energy’s Kvanefjeld project is the most advanced emerging rare earth producing operations to use a simple atmospheric leach process that presents a simpler, lower technical risk path to commercial production.
That the key process engineering design is now completed places it another step closer towards completing the Definitive Feasibility Study.
This together with the Greenland Government’s recent decision to repeal its zero-tolerance uranium policy will allow it to move into permitting and towards mine development.
That Kvanefjeld ore can be upgraded almost 10 times using a technique that ensures minimal reagent consumption during the refining stage will lower costs.
In addition, the multi‐element nature of the deposit also provide additional revenue streams, allowing the company to focus on the marketing of a cost‐competitive, long term supply of critical rare earths, in addition to uranium oxide, zinc sulphide, and bulk light rare earths (cerium, lanthanum).
Share price catalysts ahead include:
- Identifying the processes to isolate cerium and lanthanum from the critical rare earths such as praseodymium, neodymium, europium, dysprosium, terbium, and yttrium; and
- Completing the DFS.
*Proactive Investors Australia is the market leader in producing news, articles and research reports on ASX “Small and Mid-cap” stocks with distribution in Australia, UK, North America and Hong Kong / China.* Reported by Proactive Investors 5 hours ago.
Metallurgical flowsheets for both the mineral concentrator and the refinery have now been finalised and the company will now focus on reducing the risk of the refinery flowsheet with continuous pilot plant testwork.
This follows the completion of large‐scale, continuous testwork programs to extract rare earth elements and uranium from mineral concentrates, and produce marketable products.
Previous work had demonstrated that the non-refractory nature of the Kvanefjeld ore minerals allows for the use of simple, atmospheric acid leach circuits without requiring complex high-temperature acid back or caustic cracking processes that are required in many rare earth operations.
This has produced a mixed rare earth carbonate intermediate product that contains 94% rare earth oxide with 14.75% of this being the more valuable heavy rare earths.
*Kvanefjeld Refining Circuit*
The Kvanefjeld refinery circuit consists of an atmospheric leaching stage that utilises simple mechanical equipment, which will result in lower costs compared to the complex, high‐temperature ‘mineral cracking’ processes required in other rare earth element projects.
This uses simple equipment and chemistry to:
- Effectively leach both rare earth elements and uranium from the mineral concentrate with a sulphuric acid leach under atmospheric conditions;
- Creates a natural division between the steps to the recovery of REE and uranium; and
- Allows for the effective management of impurities in the leach stream.
The uranium is recovered from the leach solution using conventional solvent extraction technology which is applied in most uranium mines in the world, and is, therefore, of low technical risk.
The rare earths are then recovered in a conventional manner to produce a mixed rare earth carbonate.
*Recent Testwork*
Recent testwork involving a weak acid leach test conducted over 100 hours on 20 kilograms of mineral concentrate had demonstrated that the silica content of the Kvanefjeld ore minerals cab be effectively managed throughout the leach process on the REE‐U mineral concentrates from
This is important as the key ore minerals at Kvanefjeld are phospho‐silicate minerals, and the management of silica is essential to an effective leaching process.
The testwork program also demonstrated that high extractions of rare earth elements and uranium can be readily achieved with the weak acid leaching stage only, owing to the nonrefractory nature of the value minerals.
A pregnant leach solution containing uranium can be produced which is free of solids providing a suitable feed to uranium solvent extraction.
This is achieved using an optimised combination of flocculating chemicals and standard thickeners.
Rare earth elements are also effectively leached from the minerals, but then react to form sulphate salts that remain with the residue, thereby creating a clean separation from the uranium via liquid‐solid separation.
*Kvanefjeld Project
*
Greenland Minerals has claim to the world’s largest rare earth resources, and one of world’s larger uranium resources at the Kvanefjeld Project, which has an overall resource inventory of 956 million tonnes containing 575 million pounds of U3O8, 10.33 million tonnes of total rare earth oxides and 2.25 million tonnes of zinc.
This has the potential to rival BHP Billiton’s Olympic Dam project in South Australia, with sufficient Resources to sustain a mine life of more than 50 years.
Notably, the unique rare earth and uranium‐bearing minerals at Kvanefjeld can be effectively beneficiated into a lowmass, high value concentrate, then leached with conventional acidic solutions under atmospheric conditions to achieve particularly high extraction levels of both heavy rare earths and uranium.
Kvanefjeld is strategically located between North American and European markets at a lower latitude than long established mining regions of Alaska and northern Canada while the Fjord system in south Greenland provides direct shipping access to project area, year round.
An international airport is located 35 kilometres away, and a nearby lake system has been positively evaluated for hydroelectric power.
A Mine and Concentrator Study released in March indicated that the initial 3 million tonne per annum project will generate a pre‐tax, ungeared internal rate of return of 32% and a cash payback period of three years, based on long term prices of US$70 per pound U3O8 and US$23 per kilogram total rare earth oxides (TREO).
The company is also a key participant in European Unions’ EURARE Project, which will provide up to €375,000 toward metallurgical studies and logistical costs as well as benefit from collaborative research programs.
*Rare Earths demand*
Prices for critical rare earth elements had stabilised and started rising towards the later part of the June 2013 quarter after several quarters of price retreat.
These are important to energy efficient technologies and are forecast to be in severely short supply in the near to mid‐term.
The price increases are in general alignment with market expectations that highlight ongoing supply issues for the high‐demand heavy rare earths, along with the light rare earths neodymium and praseodymium which are important to the magnet sector.
*Greenland Government support*
Notably, Greenland’s parliament has voted to repeal its zero-tolerance uranium policy, paving the way for the company to move into permitting and towards mine development.
This allows the country to exploit its abundant resources of uranium in its south, placing it on the path towards becoming a uranium producer.
The same resources are hosted within the northern Ilimaussaq Complex and form the basis of the Kvanefjeld project.
*Analysis*
Greenland Minerals and Energy’s Kvanefjeld project is the most advanced emerging rare earth producing operations to use a simple atmospheric leach process that presents a simpler, lower technical risk path to commercial production.
That the key process engineering design is now completed places it another step closer towards completing the Definitive Feasibility Study.
This together with the Greenland Government’s recent decision to repeal its zero-tolerance uranium policy will allow it to move into permitting and towards mine development.
That Kvanefjeld ore can be upgraded almost 10 times using a technique that ensures minimal reagent consumption during the refining stage will lower costs.
In addition, the multi‐element nature of the deposit also provide additional revenue streams, allowing the company to focus on the marketing of a cost‐competitive, long term supply of critical rare earths, in addition to uranium oxide, zinc sulphide, and bulk light rare earths (cerium, lanthanum).
Share price catalysts ahead include:
- Identifying the processes to isolate cerium and lanthanum from the critical rare earths such as praseodymium, neodymium, europium, dysprosium, terbium, and yttrium; and
- Completing the DFS.
*Proactive Investors Australia is the market leader in producing news, articles and research reports on ASX “Small and Mid-cap” stocks with distribution in Australia, UK, North America and Hong Kong / China.* Reported by Proactive Investors 5 hours ago.