re: announcement follows...

re: announcement follows F:\ASXLimited\SpecialAnnouncements\05-06 Announcements\New Testwork at Young 201005.doc
LEVEL 20, 114 WILLIAM STREET, MELBOURNE, VICTORIA 3000 www.jervoismining.com.au
Telephone: (03) 9670 3766 Facsimile: (03) 9670 3691 Email: [email protected]
JERVOIS MINING LIMITED
A.B.N. 52 007 626 575
20 October 2005
The Manager
Company Announcements
Australian Stock Exchange
Level 10, 20 Bond Street
SYDNEY NSW 2000
Dear Sir,
RE: NEW TESTWORK FOR NICKEL, COBALT AND IRON RECOVERY - YOUNG, NSW
The Company has, in recent releases, drawn the attention of shareholders to testwork being
carried out at Metcon Laboratories in Sydney. The first phase of this work is now substantially
complete and the results can only be regarded as a major success in technological development.
In various tests, it was found that 15 to 30 minutes of hydrochloric acid leaching in a strong
chloride brine solution was sufficient to achieve nickel recoveries from 70% to 95% and cobalt
recoveries from 93% to 95% from the four nickel-bearing ore types at Young. We expect to be
able to improve the nickel recovery even more. Significant features of the process are:
1. leach at atmospheric pressure,
2. short duration of leach time,
3. regeneration and recycling of the lixiviant solution through a low temperature conversion
process,
4. net low acid consumption; and
5. option to produce a chemically pure iron oxide product (Fe2O3) probably suitable for direct
reduction on site.
Testwork is continuing at Metcon Laboratories.
The actual process mechanisms are not being released at this time in order to protect the
Company’s interests. The various participants in the testwork programme have all signed
Confidentiality Agreements.
Nickel laterites are relatively abundant worldwide and being near surface, are easy to mine. Their
successful exploitation is, in contrast, dependent on technological development. As is widely
appreciated, the High Pressure Acid Leach (HPAL) projects using sulphuric acid largely
disappointed and did not deliver the expected reduction in the cost structure of the nickel industry.
This is the reason that the Company decided to pursue alternative processes, the best of which is
a hydrochloric acid leach process as shown by today’s release. The Company believes this is a
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significant step towards unlocking the value of nickel/cobalt laterites at Young, NSW and
perhaps elsewhere.
The Company has also been examining the potential for ‘heap leaching’ the nickel bearing laterites
using a similar process. Testwork involving ambient temperature ‘bottle rolls’ to simulate ‘heap
leach’ have yielded encouraging nickel recoveries up to 60% and cobalt recoveries up to 75%
extraction in 3 days. These results indicate promising opportunities for chloride ‘heap leach’.
This alternative process may have application in two ways to treat:
1. the coarse (+2mm) fraction; and
2. the lower grade resource which has to be mined anyway to expose the best nickel grades.
Resource Statement
0.6% Ni cut-off: 167 million tonnes at 0.72% Ni, 0.07% Co
(140 million indicated, 27 million inferred)
Including 0.8% Ni cut-off: 58 million tonnes at 0.99% Ni, 0.07% Co
(50 million indicated, 8 million inferred)
In addition Low Grade 0.3% Ni cut-off: 113 million tonnes at 0.38% Ni, 0.04% Co
95 million indicated, 18 million inferred)
Total Resource: 280 million tonnes at 0.58% Ni, 0.06% Co
(235 million indicated, 45 million inferred)
Yours faithfully,
DUNCAN C. PURSELL
MANAGING DIRECTOR
The information in this report that relates to Mineral Resources
is based on information compiled by A. Jannink FAusIMM of Douglas McKenna & Ptnrs Pty Ltd