Perth-based Australian Vanadium Limited (ASX: AVL) believes it has identified a value-add opportunity within The Australian Vanadium Project located near Meekatharra in Western Australia.
Bench scale test work on iron and titanium rich calcine, which was considered a tailings stream within the Project’s roast-leach process, has proven the potential for generation of an iron and titanium rich calcine by-product.
Australian Vanadium’s Chief Operating Officer Todd Richardson says calcine grading >62% Fe could be sold into the global iron ore market, with calcine sales potentially providing significant additional revenue over the life of the project.
Samples of calcine material generated from pilot and bench scale tests have been used for the test work.
Mr Richardson said the test work has been very successful in improving iron grades from 54% up to an average of 66%.
As a result of this successful testing, work is now underway to physically separate a portion of the titanium, which will further upgrade the calcine material and improve its value.
“With the amount of iron and titanium rich calcine that’s forecast to be generated by The Australian Vanadium Project process, there is a big opportunity to unlock the value of this material,” Mr Richardson said.
“These indicative tests support a technical path to upgrade the material to be a valuable by-product.
“AVL is actively negotiating potential offtake agreements for both the calcine product and vanadium produced from The Australian Vanadium Project.
By-product sales could have a positive impact on overall operating costs and therefore enhance the Company’s goal to be one of the lowest cost producers of vanadium in the world.”
