Cyclone

The Cyclone Zircon mineral sands project is located about 25 kilometres west of the South Australia and Western Australia border and 300 kilometres north of Eucla in Western Australia. The project is sited within the Great Victoria Desert, on the northernmost part of the vast Eucla Basin.

Cyclone Zircon Open cut Mine to Have a Life of 14 Years

The Cyclone Zircon Project encompasses one of the largest reserves of the mineral zirconium that is known to exist in Australia, with a deposit of 140 million tonnes grading at 0.71 percent zirconium metal and 2.3 percent heavy minerals overall, following the acquisition, from Image Resources in 2015, of the adjacent Cyclone Extended Heavy Mineral Resource. This acquisition also lifts the probable ore reserve of 140 million tonnes grading at 2.5 percent heavy minerals, it represents an amount of 4.8 million tonnes of heavy minerals and 1.27 million tonnes of Zircon. The project now has an estimated mine life of 14 years based on a mining rate of 10 million tonnes of heavy minerals a year. Up from a 10 year mine life that had previously been estimated.

All Required Approvals to be in Place by February 2016

The company that is developing the Cyclone Zircon Project, Diatreme Resources Limited, are expecting to receive their last environmental regulatory approval in February, 2016, which will then allow them to further develop the deposit that is covered under their Mining Lease and a Retention Licence. The project is being developed on traditional land owned by the Pila Ngaru Spinifex People with whom Diatreme have reached an agreement, along with identifying a sufficient water supply. The project's Public Environmental Review, that is presently being assessed by the Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority, will be the last identified requirement in the process of de-risking the project.

Heavy Minerals Discovered at Cyclone Zircon Site in 2007

The Cyclone heavy minerals deposit was discovered in 2007 and since then a geological investigation and an extensive exploration drilling program have been carried out, along with a Pre-Feasibility Study which was completed in March, 2012. A Definitive Feasibility Study is currently being undertaken.

Heavy Mineral Wet Concentrate to be Produced on Site

The Cyclone Zircon Project's wet concentrator plant (WCP) when constructed, will be capable of producing a moist heavy mineral concentrate that will be transported by truck to an already existing railway siding on the Trans-Australia Railway. Both the open cut mine and the wet concentrate plant will be situated 220 kilometres north of the Forrest railway siding. It is hoped to obtain a permit to transport the concentrate through an existing nature reserve, as this is the shorter route. If this isn't permitted the concentrate will be trucked around the reserve, although this will be a far longer undertaking.

It is planned for the trucks to dump their load of heavy mineral concentrate on a stockpile to be established at the siding. Containers will be loaded from the stockpile by means of a front end loader. The containers will be transported from the siding by rail, to Port Adelaide for shipment.

The project will require a mineral separation plant to be built, either in Australia, or in China but close to an existing port, in order to receive the heavy mineral concentrate so it can be further processed. The mineral separation plant will include a hot acid leach process to allow it to clean the mineral surface coatings to allow for better mineral separation and a higher quality product.