Market Leading Flake Distribution with Exceptional Purity Concentrate up to 99.3% TGC
Melbourne, June 23, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Volt Resources Limited (
ASX:VRC) is delighted to announce that optimised results from its metallurgical test-work program have now been received. These show further improvement over previously announced results with exceptional high purity graphite concentrates produced up to 99.3% Total Graphitic Carbon (TGC). The concentrates were produced from diamond core composite samples collected from the 2015 drilling program and were achieved through a conventional circuit of milling and flotation that was carried out at ALS in Perth. No industrial chemicals were used to achieve these results.
Highlights:
- Outstanding graphite flake distribution with market leading results in the Super Jumbo and Jumbo categories
- Excellent metallurgical flotation results with up to 99.3% Total Graphitic Carbon (TGC) returned in the Super Jumbo (+500 micron) fraction
- Up to 67.7% in the Super Jumbo, Jumbo and Large flake size categories
- Industry sources and end-user talks imply current prices for Super Jumbo and Jumbo flake natural graphite are circa US$4,000/t and $2,500/t respectively
- Confirms Namangale is a first rate project that can consistently deliver premium product for high-end commercial applications
- New concentrate results and samples will be provided to end-user groups for further testing to progress negotiations
- Exceptional purity achieved without the use of industrial chemicals
- Material processing cost advantages compared to synthetic graphite and natural graphite containing deleterious elements
- Macro factors continue to drive growing demand for Jumbo flake graphite
- Discussions with potential off-take partners and end-user groups in the US, Europe and Asia are progressing well to complement existing MOUs
EXCELLENT FLAKE DISTRIBUTION AND PURITY ACHIEVED WITHOUT THE USE OF CHEMICALS
Volt has been able to demonstrate outstanding graphite concentrate quality, with some of the best flake size distributions in the graphite sector among larger peers with operations in East Africa (refer Figure 1, in link below).
Further, the Namangale concentrate graphite is separated through a straightforward crushing then flotation process and, importantly, without the use of industrial chemicals to remove impurities. This potentially delivers Volt a material comparative cost advantage mining graphite relative to peers with unwanted trace elements in their product.
RESULTS SUMMARY
The graphite concentrates produced from Namangale returned concentrate grades of up to 99.3% TGC within the +500 micron category (refer Figure 2, in link below).
BatteryLimits are managing the metallurgy and Prefeasibility Study for Volt. Its Managing Director Phil Hearse said, "These results from Namangale show high grade coarse flake graphite that is amongst the best that we have seen in our experience with graphite projects, especially since there is still considerable opportunity for further optimisation".
These results demonstrate that a premium quality concentrate can be produced from Namangale ore.
In addition, the next round of diamond drilling has commenced and is now providing additional samples for ongoing metallurgical test-work. The results of test-work to date demonstrate the Namangale deposit can consistently provide clean, high-grade TGC graphite, suitable for commercial applications mainly within the Lithium-ion battery market.
Executive Chairman, Stephen Hunt commented: "Achieving world class flake size distribution, together with exceptionally high TGC, from our first drilling campaign, is incredibly significant for Volt. These results demonstrate that Volt will be able to produce superior quality graphite, thereby ensuring Volt achieves among the highest basket price amongst its peers for its products. This will undoubtedly greatly assist our marketing and financing efforts, as we go forward. Once again, this is a very significant milestone, if not the most significant, in the Company's desire to become a world class, premium quality, graphite supplier to the burgeoning lithium-ion battery market."
CONCLUSION
The Board of Volt considers the results to date continue to indicate the Namangale project is rapidly emerging as a world-class graphite deposit.
To view the release including tables and figures, please visit:
http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/O8VVI1WH
About Volt Resources Ltd
Volt Resources Ltd (ASX:VRC) (FRA:RBL) (OTCMKTS:VLTRF) is critical minerals and battery material company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. We are a graphite producer and an emerging natural graphite anode producer. Volt has a 70% interest in the Zavalievsky Graphite business in Ukraine. The ZG mine and processing facilities have been in operation since 1934 and are near key markets with significant developments in lithium-ion battery production. ZG benefits from an existing customer base and graphite product supply chains based on excellent transport infrastructure covering road, rail, river, and sea freight combined with reliable grid power, ample potable ground water supply and good communications.
Volt acquired three licence applications that are prospective for lithium-borate mineralisation. The licence applications are in respect to a total area of 291km2, located in Serbia and are west and south-west of the Serbian capital, Belgrade.
Volt is progressing the development of its large wholly owned Bunyu Graphite Project in Tanzania. The Bunyu Graphite Project is ideally located near to critical infrastructure with sealed roads running through the project area and ready access to the deep-water port of Mtwara 140km from the Project. In 2018, Volt reported the completion of the Feasibility Study into the Stage 1 development of the Bunyu Graphite Project. The Stage 1 development is based on a mining and processing plant annual throughput rate of 400,000 tonnes of ore to produce on average 23,700tpa of graphite products. A key objective of the Stage 1 development is to establish infrastructure and market position in support of the development of the significantly larger Stage 2 expansion project at Bunyu.
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