Cobalt Blue Holdings Ltd (ASX:COB, OTC:CBBHF) has entered a test-work agreement with Hudbay Minerals Inc. that will see COB’s proprietary minerals processing technology used for Hudbay’s wholly-owned Flin Flon tailings storage facility in Manitoba, Canada.In the co-operation agreement, the processing technology will assess the ability to recover gold, silver, copper, zinc, cobalt and sulphur from a pyrite/pyrrhotite concentrate produced from the tailings.The technology is part of COB’s Cobalt in Waste Streams Project, one of three key strategies being pursued in the company’s integrated cobalt supply strategy to serve the growing global demand for clean, green energy systems.It offers the potential to convert the sulphides into elemental sulphur, which is stable and benign.Reprocessing mining waste“Reprocessing mining waste containing pyrite and recovering metals remains a focus for our business, said COB’s chief executive officer Joe Kaderavek.“Generally, the opportunities include cobalt-containing pyrite, along with other base and precious metal sulphides such as copper, zinc and gold.”The test-work program is expected to take up to four months to complete once the tailings sample is received from Hudbay.COB, which holds no equity interest in Hudbay or in the Flin Flon Tailings Facility, will receive a fee for undertaking the program, which is expected to cover its costs.READ: Cobalt Blue progresses three key building blocks in integrated cobalt supply strategyThree building blocksThe pure-play cobalt company recently issued guidance on the rollout of its strategy, which has three building blocks:Broken Hill Cobalt Project (BHCP);Cobalt/Nickel Refinery; andCobalt in Waste Streams Project.The latter is centred on COB’s proprietary processing technology, which was developed for recovering cobalt from pyrite at the BHCP and which has been proven to be effective on other non-COB projects.A BHCP project update from 2020 reported cobalt recoveries of 85–86% from ore to final cobalt sulphate product.About HudbayHudbay is a copper-focused mining company with three long-life operations and a world-class pipeline of copper growth projects in tier-one mining-friendly jurisdictions of Canada, Peru and the United States.Its operating portfolio includes the Constancia mine in Cusco (Peru), the Snow Lake operations in Manitoba (Canada) and the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia (Canada).Copper is the primary metal produced by the company, which is complemented by meaningful gold production.Hudbay’s growth pipeline includes the Copper World project in Arizona, the Mason project in Nevada (United States), the Llaguen project in La Libertad (Peru) and several expansion and exploration opportunities near its existing operations.In 2021, Hudbay identified the opportunity to reprocess Flin Flon tailings and with this in mind has recently completed a confirmatory drilling program covering around two-thirds of the tailings facility. QUOTE in Proactive Investors today
COB’s projects are being sought after by interested parties IMO.
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