REG - Blencowe Resources - DFS Update

Blencowe ResourcesAnnouncement

11/12/2023 07:15

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RNS Number : 2576W  Blencowe Resources PLC  11 December 2023

Date: 11 December
2023                               Blencowe
Resources

 

Orom-Cross Graphite Project Continues Progress on DFS Components

Project works continue towards staged DFC Milestone compliance

 

Highlights:

·    Blencowe has successfully completed the excavational and preparation
for export of an additional 600 tonne bulk sample from Orom-Cross.

·    Test work nearing completion on environmentally sustainable tailings
disposal options.

·    Expandability test work completed by leading Chinese graphite
laboratory at Wuhan University.

·    Further test work on expandability nearing completion by a leading US
graphite producer.

 

Blencowe Resources Plc ("Blencowe" or the "Company"), is pleased to provide an
update of the progress of significant works currently underway across four
continents as part of the DFS for its Orom-Cross graphite project in Northern
Uganda. Test work is currently nearing completion on a number of phases
critical for the meeting of staged milestone payments from the DFC and also
for additional discussions with potential off-take firms, specifically for the
large flake product generated by the project.

Blencowe has progressed the excavation and packaging of an additional 600
tonne bulk sample for processing at the Jilian New Technology ("Jilian") pilot
plant facility in China. This is over and above the initial 100 tonne bulk
sample that was successfully processed by Jilian earlier in the year.  This
larger sample will be used to confirm consistency of end products delivered
via commercial scale processing and it will also provide larger quantities of
tailings for test work on environmentally friendly tailings disposal.  In
addition it will also provide larger scale bulk samples of concentrates for
SPG testing. These will be used to confirm the downstream options for the
project and provide larger samples of several tonnes to various tier one
potential battery off-takers who have requested same for commercial quality
testing.

Tailings test work is nearing completion at IMO in Western Australia in line
with the Company's philosophy to be one of the greenest graphite producers
worldwide. Test work completed to date has shown that the Company can remove
up to 80% of the sulphur in the tailings and achieve significant benefits with
drying the tailings and removal of acid drainage and wet tailings disposal.
With the substantial advantage of powering the entire mining operation via
hydro-energy from the Ugandan national grid Blencowe wants to go even further
in its quest for maximum sustainability, as top ESG credentials will be a
major advantage ahead as well as a key differentiator to most other graphite
projects that cannot match this.

Expandability test work on the large flake from the Orom-Cross concentrate has
again demonstrated the high quality and purity of the Orom-Cross graphite from
all the laboratories which have indicated expansion volumes at the higher ends
of industry average for moderate dosages of oxidant and acid wash. This
coupled with the quality of the fines concentrate confirms overall highest
quality and purity of the Orom-Cross end product in all graphite market
segments.  This will bode well for offtake contracts and sales volumes.

Blencowe is now proceeding with additional metallurgical test work for other
specialised market segments and to consider downstream processing as part of
an enhanced value-add strategy for the project.  More will be announced on
this as detailed work progresses ahead.

All of the work items noted above are key actions within the US$5 million
Grant Agreement signed with the Development Finance Corporation ("DFC"), and
completion of these milestones will unlock the next tranches of funding.

 

Executive Chairman Cameron Pearce commented:

"Blencowe is making progress on all parts of the Definitive Feasibility Study
with key actions currently underway in Uganda, China, Australia and the United
States respectively.  We are very pleased with all results to date and we
will continue to add value to this world class project."

Mr Pearce added "Orom-Cross is one of the few graphite projects worldwide with
the critical three inflection point factors all in play together, being lowest
percentile capital cost, lowest percentile operating cost and highest purity
of end products.  Not many other graphite projects have all of these together
and any one of them out of sync creates big problems.  Add to this a very
sustainable project with significant ESG advantages and Orom-Cross becomes
almost unique.  These are what will ultimately allow Blencowe to secure
offtake contracts, fund the project, and bring Orom-Cross into production once
we have completed the DFS.  Our feasibility study continues to highlight
these advantages and we will use them to showcase the quality of the asset
that we are developing."

 

 

For further information please contact:

  Blencowe Resources Plc    www.blencoweresourcesplc.com

  Sam Quinn                 Tel: +44 (0)1624 681 250

                            info@blencoweresourcesplc.com (mailto:info@blencoweresourcesplc.com)

 Investor Relations         Tel: +44 (0) 7891 677 441

 Sasha Sethi                sasha@flowcomms.com (mailto:sasha@flowcomms.com)

 Tavira Financial           Tel: +44 (0)20 3192 1733

 Jonathan Evans             jonathan.evans@tavirasecurities.com
                            (mailto:jonathan.evans@tavirasecurities.com)

 First Equity Limited       Tel: +44(0)20 7330 1833

 Jason Robertson            jasonrobertson@firstequitylimited.com
                            (mailto:jasonrobertson@firstequitylimited.com)

 

 

Twitter https://twitter.com/BlencoweRes (https://twitter.com/BlencoweRes)

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/72382491/admin/
(https://www.linkedin.com/company/72382491/admin/)

 

 

Background

Orom-Cross Graphite Project

Orom-Cross is a potential world class graphite project both by size and
end-product quality, with a high component of more valuable larger flakes
within the deposit.

A 21-year Mining Licence for the project was issued by the Ugandan Government
in 2019 following extensive historical work on the deposit and Blencowe is now
in the Definitive Feasibility Study phase shortly as it drives towards first
production.

Orom-Cross presents as a large, shallow open-pitable deposit, with a maiden
JORC Indicated & Inferred Mineral Resource deposit of 24.5Mt @ 6.0% Total
Graphite Content. Development of the resource is expected to benefit from a
low strip ratio and free dig operations, thereby ensuring lower operating and
capital costs.

 

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