{"id":9992,"date":"2024-05-22T02:43:22","date_gmt":"2024-05-22T02:43:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/economicherald.net\/?p=9992"},"modified":"2024-05-22T02:43:22","modified_gmt":"2024-05-22T02:43:22","slug":"pilot-phase-begins-at-kasiya-one-of-the-worlds-largest-graphite-and-rutile-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/economicherald.net\/?p=9992","title":{"rendered":"Pilot phase begins at Kasiya, one of the world\u2019s largest graphite and rutile projects"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Pilot phase initiated to optimise mining methods for Sovereign Metals\u2019 $US1.6bn Kasiya rutile-graphite project<br \/>\nLand rehabilitation to determine best excavation and backfill approaches<br \/>\nBulk samples will be collected and tested in the lab for further graphite product qualification<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Special Report<\/em><\/strong><strong>: Pilot phase mining and land rehabilitation programs have been initiated at Sovereign Metals\u2019 1.8 billion-tonne Kasiya rutile-graphite project in Malawi.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Kasiya is both the largest natural rutile deposit and the second-largest flake graphite deposit in the world.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/stockhead.com.au\/company\/sovereign-metals-svm\/\"><strong>Sovereign Metals (ASX:SVM)<\/strong><\/a>, backed by mining major <a href=\"https:\/\/stockhead.com.au\/company\/rio-tinto-rio\/\"><strong>Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO)<\/strong><\/a> (which has a 15% stake in the developer), aims to develop a low-CO2 and sustainable operation to supply highly sought-after natural rutile and graphite to global markets.<\/p>\n<p>Last year\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/stockhead.com.au\/resources\/large-scale-multi-generational-asset-sovereigns-kasiya-will-be-the-biggest-lowest-cost-rutile-and-graphite-producer-in-the-world\/\"><strong>pre-feasibility study (PFS)<\/strong><\/a> has Kasiya producing at a run rate of 222,000tpa rutile and 244,000tpa natural graphite across a 25-year mine life \u2013 making it one of the biggest producers in the world.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Lift off for land rehabilitation and pilot phase<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The pilot phase \u2013 a precursor to the main development \u2014 allows Sovereign to determine optimal excavation and backfill land rehabilitation approaches, and demonstrate to local communities successful rehabilitation of land for agricultural use post-mining on a 9.9-hectare site over the current ore reserve.<\/p>\n<p>Both will provide critical information for the upcoming definitive feasibility study (DFS).<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Pilot phase<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Objectives of the pilot phase include:<\/p>\n<p>Optimisation of mining methods by construction of a pilot-scale open pit close to the maximum depth of the current reserves at 20m;<br \/>\nScale-up of existing in-country processing capability by installation of commercial scale spirals to produce additional bulk samples for graphite product qualification;<br \/>\nOptimising the tailings management and storage designs; and optimising land rehabilitation, soil restoration and selection of revegetation species.<\/p>\n<p>SVM plans to do this by constructing a test pit 120m x 110m and excavated to a depth of 20m, allowing optimisation of hydraulic and dry mining excavation methods.<\/p>\n<p>excavate ~150,000m3 of ore from the test pit over a three-month period and processed on-site and at the company\u2019s lab in Malawi, while also providing additional bulk samples for graphite product qualification.<\/p>\n<p>The excavated material will be temporarily stored in 4 stockpiles, namely all dry mining material, wet slimes (in a pond) and two sizes of sand fractions from the hydraulic mining. The material will then be placed back into the pit and all areas will be graded.<\/p>\n<p>Sovereign will also construct eight small rehabilitation demonstration pits across a combined area of 100m x 130m area used for water and material storage to showcase multiple rehabilitation approaches.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Rehabilitation phase<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>This phase will consist of establishing a strong soils baseline, backfilling of the test pit with different soil compositions; as well as rehabilitation tests, revegetation with plants and the improvement of soil conditions post-mining.<\/p>\n<p>Regular evaluation of the rehabilitation activities will assess the progress of vegetation growth and soil stabilisation and once rehabilitated, the proposed project site will be returned to farmland.<\/p>\n<p>SVM MD Frank Eagar says advancing to a pilot phase is an important milestone for Kasiya.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis covers the full spectrum of engineering and design, logistics, materials handling, water and environmental approvals, stakeholder engagement, livelihood restoration, tailings management and land rehabilitation,\u201d Eager says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe successful permitting is a testament to the strong owner\u2019s team we have assembled as we progress Kasiya into a totally new phase of development.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe scale and results from this phase will significantly enhance our knowledge base from the previous laboratory-based studies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n<p><span class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><em>This article was developed in collaboration with Sovereign Metals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><em>This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"et_bloom_bottom_trigger\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/stockhead.com.au\/resources\/pilot-phase-begins-at-kasiya-one-of-the-worlds-largest-graphite-and-rutile-projects\/\">Pilot phase begins at Kasiya, one of the world\u2019s largest graphite and rutile projects<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/stockhead.com.au\/\">Stockhead<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pilot phase initiated to optimise mining methods for Sovereign Metals\u2019 $US1.6bn Kasiya rutile-graphite project Land rehabilitation to determine best excavation and backfill approaches Bulk samples <a href=\"https:\/\/economicherald.net\/?p=9992\" class=\"read-more-link\">[more&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":9993,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - 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