Mine Development
Key Facts
- A detailed mine plan and schedule by Xenith Consulting details an 8 year open cut mine, with average annual production of 400,000 tonnes of ore per annum, yielding 200,000 mtu of W (1mtu = 10kg).
- Following the open cut development the mine will continue as an underground operation at 300,000 tonnes of ore per annum. Production of W, in concentrate will be largely at the same level due to the much higher grade in the underground ore body.
- Ore to be crushed and processed, primarily through a gravity circuit, with dressing of the gravity concentrates using flotation and magnetic separation.
- All relevant approvals for open cut mining have now been obtained.
- Mining Lease valid to 2029, application to extend will be lodged.
- Environmental Approval EPN7442/2 granted in 2017.
Processing Plant
The Dolphin Tungsten Project has contracted to construct a processing plant on site with annual capacity of 400,000 tonnes of feed ore. Laboratory test work conducted over an extended period resulted in a simple and cost effective gravity based flowsheet, together with a concentrate dressing circuit, being employed. The plant has been designed to produce a “coarse” and a ”fine” concentrate at 63%WO3
Once in production the processing plant may be expanded to increase plant scheelite recovery by the addition of another process step, leaching of fine process plant tails.