|
FEASIBILITY STUDY
Metalline has contracted Green Team International (GTI) to complete a Bankable Feasibility Study on its Sierra Mojada Project. The standards of a Bankable Feasibility Study are of such quality that banks and international lending institutions will lend project capital debt financing. The study will determine the costs to mine and extract the zinc and any by-product metals and apply economic analyses to determine the profitability of the project.
Metalline’s selection of GTI was partially due to GTI’s experience conducting the feasibility study for the Skorpion mine and their involvement in the project execution up to hot commissioning. Norman Green, managing member of GTI, was the Anglo Base Metals Project Manager for the Skorpion Zinc Project, while other members of GTI were deployed in area manager and various technical roles in the integrated Anglo Base Metals Team. The Anglo Base Metals Project Team was responsible for the overall management of the EPCM contractor during project execution and commissioning. After commissioning, various members of GTI remained involved during the ramp-up phase to assist with operator training, plant optimization and remedial work. The Skorpion mine is the first, and to date the only, mine in the world using the solvent extraction electrowinning process for extracting Special High Grade zinc (SHG 99.995%) from oxide zinc ore.
The study metallurgical work has developed a flow sheet, process, which concentrates the oxide zinc mineralization. The host rocks containing the zinc mineralization consist of iron oxide, limestone and dolomite. Limestone and dolomite are carbonate rocks, which are acid consuming rocks that adversely affect the acid leach economics. The metallurgical work has successfully developed a process using Dense Media Separation (DMS) and floatation, two standard metallurgical technologies, to remove and reject the carbonate minerals and concentrate the zinc minerals producing an oxide zinc concentrate with low carbonate content and higher zinc grade. Carbonate is about 65% of the mineralized rock. Removing the carbonate improves the grade from about 9%, to about 30% in the concentrate. Carbonate removal reduces, by about 65%, the amount of material to be leached; only the zinc minerals, about 35%, are leached. Reducing acid consumption and the size of the leach circuit, reduces the cost of leaching and the capital cost of the leach circuit. The metallurgical results were announced as a news release and a Form 8K on July 12, 2005.
Producing a high-grade concentrate improves economics over direct leaching of the as mined mineralized material by reducing acid consumption and capital costs. An important additional advantage is that it allows the option of locating the refinery site in the country that provides the best economics relative to taxation, electricity cost, water, equipment and transportation costs and other factors related to the refinery, the extraction and reduction processes.. The mine and concentrator would be in Mexico, the refinery could be in Mexico or another country offering better economics. Refinery site location is being investigated as part of the Feasibility Study.
The Mine Plan portion of the Feasibility Study has been awarded to Pincock Allen & Holt, international mining and financial consultants, as announced in a news release dated April 10, 2006. The scope of work includes:
Geologic Review
Review of Resource Estimate and Methodology
Detailed mine plan Development
Mine Equipment Selection
Mine Capital Estimate
Mine Operating Cost Estimate
Development of an Ore Reserve Estimate
The Mine Plan will determine the mining method, production rate and associated costs.
The metallurgy and mining data will be the basis for the design of the refinery.
Metalline Mining | 1330 E. Margaret Ave. | Coeur d'Alene, ID 83815
TEL: 208.665.2002 | EMAIL: info@metallinemining.com | ©2008 Metalline
|
|
|
