most cost-efficient, rare earth operation in the world.
Andrew Reid, Managing Director, commented:
“BCM now has a clear vision, to evaluate in-situ recovery (ISR) as the viable path towards development of the Ema project.
To create, utilising in-situ recovery coupled with magnesium sulfate leaching solution the greenest most environmentally protective, cost-efficient, rare earth operation in the world.
The recent field trials completed over an initial set of holes to assess the ability of water to permeate through the clay zone which would mimic that needed for in-situ leaching, has produced a compelling response that ISR is the right direction for this project.
The lab diffusion tests have also shown that high recovery of MREE’s without any crushing, grinding, agitation, screening or agglomeration can be extracted from the mineralisation.
The work front is now four-fold, the infill drilling program is approximately one-third complete, ANSTO are continuing with their test program around impurity removal and precipitation towards generating a final MREC product, Ausenco have been selected to lead the scoping study for Ema which will commence immediately, and CERN are about to re-commence environmental base line studies over Ema.”
(20min delay)