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MODERN MINING
January 2015
MINING News
Trial programme will deliver real-time drilling results
Real-time drilling results will be available to
resource prospectors for the north-west cor-
ner of South Australia.
The far north of Eyre Peninsula has been
selected as the location for a world-first trial
programme which delivers real-time drilling
results, improving explorers’chances of find-
ing the next major discovery.
Opening the South Australian Exploration
and Mining Conference in Adelaide recently,
Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Tom
Koutsantonis said the new A$2 million PACE
Frontiers 2015 Mineral Systems Drilling
programme will allow explorers to make
decisions“on the spot”and better target their
efforts to drive exploration dollars further.
“Rather than having to wait days and
weeks to see the results of sampled drill
cores, the participating explorers will effec-
tively have‘instant’access to live sensors and
on-site analysis of geology,” Koutsantonis
said.
“This will drastically speed up exploration
results testing, enabling explorers to quickly
adapt their drilling programmes, improving
their chance of success.
“With the roll-out of this technology in
our own backyard, South Australian explor-
ers will be among the best-placed in the
world to rapidly assess the merits of mineral
assets, and make a quantum leap in produc-
tivity gains.”
Koutsantonis said the northern Eyre
Peninsula was the perfect location to test-
drive the next generation of exploration
technologies.
Alluvial diamond miner Rockwell
Diamonds Inc reports it has entered into a
conditional agreement to acquire certain
alluvial diamond properties and associated
plant and equipment from Bondeo 140 CC
and its affiliates. The deal will be worth
Premier African Minerals Limited (PAM),
the AIM-traded natural resource company
with mineral projects located in Southern
and Western Africa, has placed an order
for the process plant for the RHA tungsten
project (RHA) in Zimbabwe. Premier is the
operator of RHA and holds a 49 % interest.
The project is located in the Kamativi tin
belt of north-western Zimbabwe and PAM
is planning two stages of development –
a first phase, low capex (US$4,8 million)
open pit, which provides an 18-month life
of mine, followed by an undergroundmine
(capex estimate – US$14,7 million) based
on mechanised long-hole open stoping.
The open-pit annual production will be
96 000 t (ROM) while the underground
production rate will be between 192 000
and 288 000 t (ROM).
George Roach, CEO of Premier, com-
mented: “Confirming this order is a further
step in the process of re-opening the
RHA mine. Although the initial deposit
has been paid from our cash on hand,
additional finance as set out in our press
release of 25 November 2014 will still be
Process plant ordered for Zimbabwean tungsten project
A 3D model of the process plant for the RHA tungsten project.
required and we continue our advanced
negotiations on off-take and/or marketing
contracts and other finance options.”
The process plant is designed to meet
a throughput of 16 t/h or 8 000 tonnes per
month and achieve a wolframite recov-
ery of 82,8 %. The stated production rate
excludes any consideration of a pre-con-
centration circuit which, if implemented in
future, could increase the plant through-
put fivefold at a 20 % recovery loss as
determined in the metallurgical test work
announced on 10 September 2014.
The modular plant will be built in
Johannesburg by Appropriate Process
Technologies (APT). The modules will be
containerised and trucked to site where it
is expected that the process plant will be
fully commissioned by mid-2015. The PEA
released on 28 October 2014 modelled
average gross monthly revenue before
expenses of US$1,78 million.
Rockwell to acquire MOR properties
includes C$12,0 million (R120 million) for
the mineral rights and three fit-for-purpose
processing plants with such consideration
payable on the closing date.
Commenting on the transaction, James
Campbell, Rockwell’s CEO and President,
said: “We are delighted to have concluded
this agreement as it represents an excit-
ing growth platform for Rockwell. Our
executive and operational management
have demonstrated their alluvial diamond
production expertise during Rockwell’s
corporate turnaround and have the capac-
ity to take on these additional assets.
“We have reviewed a number of consoli-
dation opportunities and the transaction
met all our strategic criteria. The assets are
contiguous to our existingMOR operations,
which are known for their gem quality dia-
monds. We know the geology of the area.
So these new assets offer economies of
scale, with the potential to reduce the vola-
tility of our quarterly production results
and take us above our target of processing
500 000 m
3
per month. It will also give us
the opportunity to allocate our financial,
human and intellectual capital more effi-
ciently across a broader resource base.”
C$28,5 million (R284,2 million)
The assets are contiguous to Rockwell’s
existing properties in the Middle Orange
River (MOR) region and will significantly
enlarge its operating and resource base.
The total acquisition consideration