Terra Metals (ASX: TM1) has added significant value to its multi-element Dante project in Western Australia with initial metallurgical test work.
The highly productive Dante work has demonstrated the potential for the project to produce high-grade concentrates from a number of precious and critical minerals using simple and low-cost processing techniques.
The company applied established methods from existing processing operations of similar ores in Brazil, China and South Africa to guide the test work and the interpretation of results.
Chief executive officer Thomas Line said the initial tests had highlighted Dante Reefs’ potential to be a globally significant source of a range of commercially-attractive products.
“We have systematically approached the development and assessment of the Dante Reefs since the initial discovery was made last year,” Mr Line said.
“We will continue our systematic development of the deposit, including Phase 2 optimisation test work and delineation of a maiden resource.”
“Given the large amount of work undertaken last year, we believe we can achieve these next major milestones cost-effectively with modest further investment.”
A copper-gold-platinum group metals (PGM) sulphide concentrate with grades of 28.0% copper, 17 grams per tonne gold and 21.4g/t PGM was the highlight, with the tests also achieving recoveries of 95.8% copper, 75.8% gold and 74.4% PGM.
Terra also produced a positive high-grade vanadium-magnetite concentrate grading 1.81% vanadium pentoxide using low-cost magnetic separation.
Notably, the company recorded these high-grade concentrates with excellent recovery rates using the lower-cost techniques.
“The mineralogy has favourable properties compared to some other known deposits in production,” Terra principal metallurgist Dr Evan Kirby said.
“The initial results demonstrate a potential pathway to produce a high-grade, saleable copper–precious metal sulphide concentrate, a high-grade vanadium concentrate suitable for producing high-purity vanadium pentoxide flake and a high-quality commercial titanium–ilmenite concentrate using simple and low-cost processing methods.”
Terra is planning Phase 2 metallurgical test work to optimise the processing parameters, concentrate grades and metal recoveries.
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