VRX Silica Limited (ASX: VRX) has provided an update to the Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) and Ore Reserve Statement (ORS) for its Arrowsmith North silica sand project, located 270km north of Perth.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Maiden Proved Ore Reserve of 9.2Mt and updated total Ore Reserve of 221Mt
- Updated Mineral Resource of 768Mt @ 98.0% SiO2, includes a Measured Resource of 10Mt @ 95.9% SiO2
- Pilot plant testwork confirms product specifications for marketing and offtakes
The MRE update is based on an additional 130 close spaced grade control holes. These holes were drilled as a pre-production activity to increase the resource confidence in the initial years of mining, and to produce a bulk sample for pilot scale metallurgical testwork and the generation of bulk samples for potential offtake partners.
The pilot plant testwork of a 3.3 tonne bulk metallurgical composite is complete. In combination with market analysis a suite of five saleable products have been determined that will be produced from Arrowsmith North. Process and engineering design of the proposed process plant has been guided by the chemical and physical specifications of these products.
VRX Silica Managing Director Bruce Maluish said:
“This updated Mineral Resource and Reserve is a culmination of significant metallurgical testwork and evaluation of the Resource to determine the premium products we can produce.
“These products include sought after foundry sand as well as glassmaking sand suitable for flat glass, including automobile glass and also container glass. “We have despatched large samples to a number of foundry and glassmaking companies in Korea, Japan and Taiwan for evaluation and subsequent discussions for offtake.”
