SML is coming, page-4

Ngualla will be a important supply source for Barite as well with 35.6 million tonne of resource.

Barite Market Outlook - 2027

The global barite market was valued at $1.4 billion in 2019, and is projected to reach $2.4 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 7.3% from 2020 to 2027.

COVID-19 pandemic across the globe has led to decrease in demand for barite as oil & gas drilling activities across the globe has been halted.

Barite is a primary, naturally occurring, barium-based mineral, which exhibits high density and chemical inertness, making it an ideal mineral for many applications. It has a high specific gravity of 4.50 g/cm3 and Mohs hardness from 3.0 to 3.5. Barite, which may be found in a variety of colors, including yellow, brown, white, blue, gray, or even colorless, has a vitreous to pearly luster. It is found in conjunction with both metallic and nonmetallic mineral deposits. To be economically viable for extraction, barite needs to be the predominant material in a deposit. The types of deposits in which it is normally found include vein, residual, and bedded. Vein and residual deposits are of hydrothermal origin, while bedded deposits are sedimentary.

https://www.peakresources.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/sample.pdf

Highlights:
The Mineral Resource estimate for the Weathered Bastnaesite Zone mineralisation at a 1%
rare earth oxide (REO) lower grade cut-off is:
21.3 million tonnes at 4.75% REO* and 37.7% barite for 1,010,000 tonnes of contained
REO and 8.03 million tonnes of contained barite.
The Weathered Bastnaesite Zone Mineral Resource is included within and is a subset of the
total Mineral Resource estimate for the Ngualla Project at a 1% REO lower grade cut-off of:
214.4 million tonnes at 2.15% REO* and 16.6% barite for 4,620,000 tonnes of contained
REO and 35.6 million tonnes of contained barite.
The REO component of the Ngualla Mineral Resource estimate remains unchanged from
that reported on 22 February 2016 (ASX Announcement ‘Higher Grade Mineral Resource for
Ngualla Rare Earth Project’).
There may be potential for barite to become a future by-product once a rare earth
operation is established at Ngualla and on completion of further studies.
The Feasibility Study for the Ngualla Rare Earth Project based on the unchanged +1% REO
Weathered Bastnaesite Zone Mineral Resource excludes any barite by-product and remains
on track for completion late in the first quarter or early second quarter 2017 and this
remains the Company’s priority focus and the main value driver for the project.