Alkane - Hafnium product breakthrough consolidates Dubbo Project business case

Alkane - Hafnium product breakthrough consolidates Dubbo Project business case.

Summary

• Alkane’s wholly owned subsidiary, Australian Strategic Materials Ltd (ASM), has developed high‐purity hafnium dioxide products tailored to meet market requirements.
• Hafnium oxide exceeding 99.8% HfO2, and 99.9% (Hf+Zr)O2, has been produced using a proprietary process to separate hafnium from zirconium at the demonstration pilot plant at ANSTO.
• Over the past 12 months, ASM has consulted extensively with industry to confirm growing market demand for high‐purity hafnium, which currently depends on supply from the production of zirconium metal for specialty alloys and the nuclear industry.
• Global shortage of hafnium anticipated as demand is poised to outstrip current supply.
• Hafnium metal for super alloys is currently trading in a US$800 ‐ $900/kg range. The ASM business case assumes a conservative product price of US$500/kg for its oxide.
• ASM will initially produce 25tpa hafnium to meet projected market demand, ramping up to higher quantities as required.

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Development of high‐purity hafnium dioxide

Australian Strategic Materials Ltd (ASM), a wholly owned subsidiary of Alkane Resources, has successfully developed a high‐purity hafnium dioxide (HfO2) product that will be directly marketable as a feed material for a number of downstream applications and for producing metallic hafnium. The technical specifications of this material have been tailored to meet global market requirements, following extensive industry consultation over the past 12 months. 

RNC Minerals surges on $1-billion Nickel-Cobalt mne plans in Quebec Canada

RNC Minerals Surges on $1-billion Nickel-Cobalt Mine Plans. The company is looking to secure financing to build the world's largest nickel-cobalt project next year. Its share price rose nearly 50 percent on Monday.

Source: Investing News LINK

 

 

Extracting a bulk sample at the Dumont nickel-cobalt project near Amos, northern Quebec. (Source: RNC Minerals)

RNC Minerals Plans Initiatives to Allow Decision to Begin Construction of Dumont Nickel-Cobalt Project in 2019; Highlights Large Nickel and Cobalt Reserves

 

"The Dumont Nickel-Cobalt Project, one of the world's premier battery metals projects, contains the world's largest undeveloped reserves of both cobalt and nickel. It also contains the 2^nd largest nickel reserve and the 8^th largest cobalt reserve of any deposit in the world," said Mark Selby, President and CEO of RNC Minerals. "Dumont is the only deposit of this scale that is not currently in operation and not owned by a major mining company (the other eight largest deposits are owned by companies that include Glencore, Vale, Norilsk, Sumitomo Corp, and Jinchuan – see below Tables 1 and 2). Given market concern regarding future cobalt and nickel supply for electric vehicles, and nickel prices at the $12,000-$13,000/t ($5.50-$6/lb) level, RNC believes it is well-positioned to significantly advance Dumont in 2018."

RNC Press release : LINK

 

RNC is a multi-asset precious and base metal mining company with high quality production and development assets in low risk jurisdictions. The company’s principal assets are the producing Beta Hunt gold and nickel mine in Western Australia, a 50% stake in the nickel joint venture that holds the Dumont Nickel Project in the Abitibi region of Quebec, and a 30% stake in the producing Reed Mine in the Flin Flon-Snow Lake region of Manitoba, Canada.

 

RNC Minerals