REG - AfriTin Mining Ltd - Lithium Test Work Produces High-Purity Concentrate

Andrada MiningAnnouncement

24/05/2022 07:16

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RNS Number : 5206M  AfriTin Mining Ltd  24 May 2022

24 May 2022

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to
constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations
(EU) No. 596/2014 (MAR) as in force in the United Kingdom pursuant to the
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this
announcement via Regulatory Information Service (RIS), this inside information
is now considered to be in the public domain.

 

AfriTin Mining Limited

("AfriTin" or the "Company")

Lithium By-Product Test Work Produces High-Purity Concentrate

AfriTin Mining Limited (AIM: ATM), an African technology metals mining company
with a portfolio of mining and exploration assets in Namibia, is pleased to
announce metallurgical test work results showing the successful production of
a petalite lithium concentrate, indicating the potential for a lithium
by-product at the Company's flagship polymetallic asset, the Uis Mine ("Uis").

 

Link to full pdf version with images:
https://afritinmining.com/lithium-by-product-test-work-produces-high-purity-concentrate/
(https://afritinmining.com/lithium-by-product-test-work-produces-high-purity-concentrate/)

 

Highlights:

·      A high-purity (up to 94%) petalite lithium concentrate was
produced from bulk ore samples by independent test facilities;

·      Confirms high-grade, ultra-low iron petalite at 4.34% Li(2)O and
contaminants levels of 0.03% Fe(2)O(3) and 0.93% alkalis (Na(2)O + K(2)O);

·      The Company expects the concentrate to meet demand from premium
glass and ceramics manufacturers, and be suitable feedstock for battery-grade
lithium carbonate or lithium hydroxide converters;

·      A large bulk sample (11 tonnes) was collected to produce petalite
lithium concentrate samples for distribution to potential offtakers; and

·      EPCM contractor appointed for the design and construction of a
lithium pilot processing plant at the Uis Mine.

 

Anthony Viljoen (CEO) commented:

"We are pleased to announce the results from the first phase of lithium test
work for the Uis Mine, showing the potential for producing a high-quality
petalite lithium concentrate from our lithium mineral resource.

The lithium resource is contained within the currently mined ore body, and the
lithium concentrate will be a by-product to our existing tin concentrate.
These positive test results allow us to progress to the design and
construction of a lithium pilot plant at Uis.

Petalite concentrate has historically been sold into the technical market, as
feedstock in glass and ceramics industry. Given the increasing global demand
for lithium supply and the quality of our lithium, we are also receiving
in-bound enquiries from the lithium conversion industry who can develop
petalite into battery-grade lithium carbonate or hydroxide. Techno-economic
modelling of an expanded operation (see announcement of Uis Phase 2 PEA on 26
April 2022) has highlighted the substantial revenue potential of lithium for
the Uis Mine."

 

Metallurgical Test Work

The Company has completed the initial phase of lithium by-product
metallurgical test work, which produced high-purity (up to 94%) petalite
lithium concentrate, averaging 4.34 % Li(2)O, and presenting low contaminant
levels of 0.03% Fe(2)O(3), 0.54% Na(2)O and 0.39% K(2)O. These qualities are
typical of petalite concentrates used as lithium feedstock in the premium
glass and ceramics industry which requires a high lithia to iron ratio. The
Company also expects the concentrate to be suitable for conversion to
battery-grade lithium carbonate or hydroxide. Petalite can be converted to
beta-spodumene through roasting, rendering it suitable for lithium processing
methods employed by spodumene converters.  Several potential offtakers in the
lithium conversion industry have expressed interest in the Company's expected
lithium by-product.

The metallurgical test work was independently conducted at test service
providers LightDeepEarth (South Africa), PESCO (South Africa) and Geolabs
Global (South Africa). Bulk ore samples were collected from the active mining
area and the discard stream of the current processing plant at Uis. These
samples were processed via Dense Medium Separation ("DMS") methods on a
laboratory and pilot scale and achieved a 4 to 5 times Li(2)O upgrade. The
concentrates from the DMS process were subjected to a milling and flotation to
produce a final lithium petalite concentrate.

The next phase of lithium test work will optimise flotation operating
parameters and will involve the existing and two additional test work service
providers, Nagrom (Australia) and ANZAPLAN (Germany). A large bulk sample of
11 tonnes has already been collected for treatment at Nagrom's test facility
in Australia to produce lithium petalite concentrate product samples for
distribution to potential off-takers.

Lithium Pilot Plant

The Company has also appointed Consulmet (South Africa) as EPCM contractor for
designing and constructing a 20 tph pilot plant at Uis with a target
commissioning date in Q4 2022. The pilot plant is intended as a proof of
concept for a full-scale, integrated lithium beneficiation circuit, which
would be added to the existing processing plant. Petalite lithium concentrate
produced from the pilot plant is intended for initial sales into premium glass
and ceramic markets, and test material for existing and/or prospective
converters of lithium ore concentrates to battery-grade lithium.

Ore Sorting

The Company is investigating the potential of sensor-based ore sorting
technology to produce a lithium pre-concentrate prior to concentration with
DMS and flotation. Initial test work by Steinert (Germany) demonstrated a
hyperspectral signature for petalite using a near-infrared ("NIR") and laser
sensor. This has the potential of achieving waste rejection early in the
beneficiation process and increasing the feed grade to the lithium
concentrator.

Process Flow Design

The results of the metallurgical test work and lithium pilot campaigns will
inform the process flow design ("PFD") of the full-scale, integrated lithium
beneficiation circuit, which is targeted for implementation in 2024. Figure 1
summarises the ultimate PFD for producing separate tin, tantalum and lithium
petalite concentrates.

 

Competent Person

The technical data in this announcement has been reviewed by Laurence Robb, a
Non-Executive Director of AfriTin. Laurence Robb (BScHons, MSc, PhD, FGS,
FGSSA, FRSSA) has more than 40 years of industry-related mineral project
development experience. He is registered as a Professional Natural Scientist
with The South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions, and
Chartered Geologist with the Geological Society of London. He was Professor of
Economic Geology and Director of the Economic Geology Research Institute in
the University of the Witwatersrand's School of Geosciences. He is currently
based at Oxford University as a Visiting Professor. He has reviewed the
technical disclosures in this release and consents to the release of the
information contained herein.

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement may contain some references to forecasts, estimates,
assumptions and other forward-looking statements. Although the Company
believes that its expectations, estimates and forecast outcomes are based on
reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that they will be achieved.
They may be affected by a variety of variables and changes in underlying
assumptions that are subject to risk factors associated with the nature of the
business, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those
expressed herein. All references to dollars ($) and cents in this announcement
are in United States currency, unless otherwise stated. Investors should make
and rely upon their own enquiries before deciding to acquire or deal in the
Company's securities.

 

Glossary of abbreviations

 DMS            Dense medium separation
 EPCM           Engineering, procurement and construction management
 Li             Symbol for Lithium
 Li → Li(2)O    Metal to metal-oxide conversion factor of 2.153
 Li(2)O         Lithium oxide
 NIR            Near-infrared
 PEA            Preliminary economic assessment
 PFD            Process flow design
 tph            Tonnes per hour

 

 

Glossary of Technical Terms

 Lithium carbonate  A carbonate salt of lithium (Li(2)CO(3)), a feedstock in the manufacturing of
                    lithium compounds used in lithium-ion batteries.
 Lithium hydroxide  An alkali (LiOH), used as feedstock in the manufacturing of lithium compounds
                    used in lithium-ion batteries. Lithium carbonate is often converted to LiOH
                    prior to manufacturing of battery lithium compounds.
 Petalite           A lithium aluminium phyllosilicate mineral LiAlSi(4)O(10)

 

 

 

 AfriTin Mining Limited                   +27 (11) 268 6555
 Anthony Viljoen, CEO
 Nominated Adviser                        +44 (0) 207 220 1666
 WH Ireland Limited

 Katy Mitchell
 Corporate Advisor and Joint Broker
 H&P Advisory Limited                     +44 (0) 20 7907 8500

 Andrew Chubb

 Jay Ashfield

 Nilesh Patel
 Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited           +44 (0) 20 7710 7600

 Ashton Clanfield

 Callum Stewart
 Tavistock Financial PR (United Kingdom)  +44 (0) 207 920 3150
 Jos Simson

 Oliver Lamb

 Nick Elwes

 

 

About AfriTin Mining Limited

Notes to Editors

AfriTin Mining Limited is a London-listed technology metals mining company
with a vision to create a portfolio of globally significant, conflict-free,
producing and exploration assets. The Company's flagship asset is the Uis Tin
Mine in Namibia, formerly the world's largest hard-rock open cast tin mine.

AfriTin is managed by an experienced board of directors and management team
with a current strategy to ramp-up production at the Uis Tin Mine in Namibia
to more than 10,000 tonnes of tin concentrate and 350,000 tonnes of lithium
concentrate in a Phase 2 expansion, having reached Phase 1 commercial
production in 2020. The Company strives to capitalise on the solid
supply/demand fundamentals of tin and lithium by developing a critical mass of
resource inventory, achieving production in the near term and further scaling
production by consolidating assets in Africa.

 

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