Glenover Project Moves Closer to Development

RNS Number : 2909B

Galileo Resources PLC

03 March 2014

 



3 March 2014

Galileo Resources PLC

("Galileo" or "the Company" or "the Group")

Glenover Phosphate/Rare Earth Project Moves Closer To Development

Galileo (AIM: GLR), the emerging African Phosphate/Rare Earth Exploration and Development company, announces the results of the intense 2013 test programme, which the Company believes has added significant value to both its investment in Glenover Phosphate (Pty) Ltd  ("Glenover") and the Glenover Phosphate Rare Earth project ("Project").

Highlights

·     Glenover advanced critical metallurgical test work to pre-feasibility study (PFS) status

·     Reports from the recently completed major process study in China suggest that a nitric acid process could produce more highly saleable products, than those from the sulphuric acid process, which include mixed rare earth oxides, nitro-phosphate and calcium nitrate fertilisers

·     Internal project finance studies suggest that Glenover could be viable from these fertiliser products alone thus making the cost of rare earth oxide production potentially much lower than previously anticipated  

·     The reports indicate that niobium can also be recovered, which provides Glenover with the potential to an additional increased high value by-product

·     Process optimisation work in Germany is moving towards improving project fundamentals by increasing recoveries and streamlining the flow sheet

·     Marketing and logistic work is advancing towards achieving a world class phosphate rare earth project located on the Natal coast of South Africa

Colin Bird CEO and Chairman said: "We have made major progress during 2013 and the recently received process work from China demonstrates that we can position ourselves in the emerging western rare earth world, whilst having a significant position in African phosphate production. The niobium by-product recovered via the Chinese process, may play a major part in final process route selection.

"During 2014 we intend to consolidate on the advances made and to secure the necessary strategic partnerships to move the Glenover project towards production."

Glenover 2013 review and management discussion

Glenover has now completed the major phase of its PFS-level metallurgy. This included both the update and optimisation of the previous preliminary economic assessment (PEA) metallurgy work carried out by Dorfner Anzaplan  (AnzaPlan) in Germany as well as the completion of an alternative PFS-level process metallurgy by GRINM (Guangzhou Research Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals) in China.  Both programmes were completed in December 2013. Key improvements made to the previously reported PEA flow sheet (7 March 2013), which was based on whole-ore sulphuric acid cracking process (Anzaplan), include the potential economic value-add recovery of 93% of the phosphate in the ore into PK (phosphate-potassium) a granular fertiliser product.  The GRINM metallurgy developed over 14 months provides a potentially superior and well-understood process, that offers the market two potentially highly saleable product packages - Phosphate fertiliser and mixed Rare Earth Oxides (REO), a value-add calcium nitrate by-product and the certainty of Niobium (Nb) credits, if commercially recoverable, from the Nb-REO intermediate concentrate (Nb-REO)  

Highlights of the GRINM metallurgy referred to by Glenover as the Nitrophos-Rare Earth (NPRE) Process, are as follows:

·     Ore Feed:	400 000 tonnes per annum (TPA) (over 25 year mine-life)
·     Phosphate  recovery:	63% overall
·     Fertiliser Products:	Granular NP (nitro-phosphate) -  310 000TPA   Calcium Nitrate 190 000TPA
·     Overall REO recovery:	53% (into mixed REO concentrate) and 24% (into an intermediate Nb-REO concentrate for further processing)
·     Final REO product:	+90% purity mixed REO Concentrate:  5 500TPA

Further work anticipated during 2014, will be aimed at improving efficiencies of specific process steps and recovery from recycles. Proposed flow sheets for processing the Nb-REO will also be tested.

Based on the data from this NPRE Process work, Glenover has internally completed basic project operational economics, which suggest Glenover could be a very low / near zero cost rare earth producer i.e. Glenover could be viable from the production of fertiliser products only, while still operating the rare earth recovery circuit.

The Company's logistical studies suggest optimal construction of a processing facility on the east coast of Natal, in South Africa, which Glenover believes should simplify its ore and reagent logistics and provide a suitable and cost effective location relative to potential export markets. In order to secure an ore-to-coast logistics solution, Glenover is in discussions with a local coal mining entity, which is in the process of constructing a rail line in the Waterberg that is set to pass within 20 kilometres of the Glenover mine site.

As far as its markets are concerned, Glenover intends selling its fertiliser products into the Southern African, East African and Indian markets and marketing its Rare Earths globally. With respect to the latter, discussions are in progress on collaborating with a strategic Rare Earth processing and marketing corporation with an established refinery. A letter of intent has recently been signed with this entity. 

The next steps involve engaging a strategic fertiliser and funding partner and appointing an engineering consultancy to conduct a full project pre-feasibility study. Glenover is currently considering bids for this study.

St Vincent Minerals Inc (SVM) Acquisition

The proposed acquisition of SVM (announced 4 February) is progressing with closure of the transaction anticipated towards the end of March subject to, inter alia, approval of SVM shareholders and relevant regulatory approval.    

A copy of this announcement will be available on the Company's website www.galileoresources.com 

Technical Sign-Off

Andrew Sarosi, Director of Galileo, who holds a B.Sc. Metallurgy  and M.Sc. Engineering, University of Witwatersrand and is a member of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, is a "qualified person" as defined under the AIM Rules for Companies and a competent person under the reporting standards. The technical parts of this announcement have been prepared under Andrew's supervision and he has approved the release of this announcement.

For further information, please contact:

Colin Bird, Chairman and CEO                                                       Tel [phone]

Andrew Sarosi, Executive Director                                             Tel [phone]
www.galileoresources.com 

Beaumont Cornish Limited                                                            Tel [phone]

Nominated Advisor and Broker

Roland Cornish/Felicity Geidt

Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited                                           Tel [phone]

Joint Broker

Jerry Keen/Toby Gibbs

Gable Communications                                                                   Tel [phone]

Justine James                                                                                       M [phone]

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements. Note: This release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements may differ materially from actual future events or results and are based on current expectations or beliefs. For this purpose, statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements include statements in which the Company uses words such as "continue", "efforts", "expect", "believe", "anticipate", "confident", "intend", "strategy", "plan", "will", "estimate", "project", "goal", "target", "prospects", "optimistic" or similar expressions. These statements by their nature involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially depending on a variety of important factors, including, among others, the Company's ability and continuation of efforts to timely and completely make available adequate current public information, additional or different regulatory and legal requirements and restrictions that may be imposed, and other factors as may be discussed in the documents filed by the Company on SEDAR (www.sedar.com), including the most recent reports that identify important risk factors that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake any obligation to review or confirm analysts' expectations or estimates or to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

 

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