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Battery materials and the growing importance of urban ore
Why existing minerals and metals in batteries will change the dynamics of the mining industry
For millennia, we’ve mined and refined materials to power our civilisations and industries, and feed consumer demand for products. This has traditionally been a linear process: dig material from the ground, purify and convert it into useful forms, manufacture products for use and then dispose of these products.
However, with electric vehicles – which are subject to technology disruption, changing regulations and uncertain geopolitical factors – driving a surge in demand for battery materials, is it time to rethink the mining value chain?
“The scale of the decarbonisation task requires a lot of new mines,” says Worley vice president, battery materials, Greg Pitt.
“But it also depends on a greater role for recycled materials already mined, which exist in batteries and other electronic devices.”
These devices – currently found within homes, warehouses, aging electrical infrastructure and more – make up the “urban orebody”. Their materials could be worth tens of billions of dollars. And if the industry can recycle these materials, it could reduce both the time to get metal to market and environmental impacts compared with traditional mining and materials processing.
So, if more minerals, metals, and battery grade materials needed for the energy transition come from recycling, rather than new mines and facilities, how will this impact established players within the mining industry?
Assessing the urban orebody
Modern technologies are capable of recycling certain commodities, such as steel, aluminium, copper and lead. As Pitt explains, when existing technologies and devices reach end of life, the materials can be economically placed back into service to create more products for consumption.
“If we consider high nickel cathode variants, the importance of recycling is emerging quickly,” he says. “This is partly because of policy settings, such as the minimum threshold for recycled content mandated by the European Battery Regulations. It’s also being driven by feedstock security needs, and some part by pure economics to maximise value streams from off spec material and production waste.
“Value chain players, particularly cathode material manufacturers, are now conceiving ‘closed loop’ systems in their investment strategies to capture and re-purpose battery waste back into their processing facilities,” says Pitt.
“This is good news for reducing the environmental impact of battery production, as it’s possible to achieve greater sustainable outcomes by using more recycled content, but there is still a hill to climb for recycling technologies to deliver efficient yield recovery economically. The battery value chain is no longer linear.”
How could the urban orebody impact the traditional mining industry?
The emergence of recycling means miners of the future can extract value from both ends of the value chain: natural resources in the earth’s crust, and the urban ore body that exists in recovered batteries, off spec cathode materials and black mass.
“This has some big implications,” says Pitt.
“Recycling materials brings an entirely new set of opportunities and challenges for miners to tackle, which could change the role miners play.”
Pitt explains why.
“For centuries, mining has involved extracting value from variable single digit ore grades, which need a lot of capital investment and involve long payback periods to bring virgin material to market.
“However, the urban orebody of the future has an extremely high content of key minerals – Cu, Ni, Li, Co, Mn, Al, Fe – which are widely distributed but relatively easily transportable to central processing. It’s also ever increasing in volume as more products are made and then reach end of life.
“And yet we don’t currently see the mining industry actively participating in taking full advantage of this opportunity.”
So, what implications could this urban ore body have on traditional miners that follow a linear mining process?
Investing in a new mine asset is typically a long and high-risk process, mainly due to the uncertainty in the quality and quantity of the ore body involved and the cost of mining and refining it. Imagine a world where these are known, and the mine life is set to infinity.
Pitt says: “Several key questions then emerge: will the urban orebody miners of the future be an entirely new set of players, or will miners diversify their models and influence both ends of the value chain?
“Will heritage miners become pure upstream suppliers of incremental virgin materials to ‘top up’ the increasingly circular system?”
Explaining the leased mineral model for battery materials
Consider the fundamental economics influencing the commercial landscape. Cathode material is the major contributor to battery cell cost. This is primarily driven by the purchase price of the key mineral feedstocks used.
“Major producers of cathode material have seen the immediate economic benefit of producing their own feedstocks from recycled materials and reducing their reliance on upstream material supply,” says Pitt.
“This is also being driven by OEM obligations to recover end of life batteries and find a partner to take and feed them back into the value chain. It’s an obvious strategy to ask cathode companies to recycle.”
But what if you didn’t need to buy the key minerals to make a battery, and could lease them instead?
This shift in mindset opens new possibilities and commercial models to drive down product costs and incentivise even more circularity throughout the system.
“For example, nickel in a nickel manganese cobalt [NMC] battery cell could be on loan, so you pay only for the time during which you used it. This would end when you return the molecule back to its original owner,” says Pitt.
“We can, with some effort, find more minerals at reasonable grades from the traditional mining process. But it’s actually a going-out-of-business model if you take a long-term perspective and consider declining ore grades and scarcity.
“Instead, we could view the minerals themselves as a perpetual asset, within a closed or near closed system, to be recirculated infinitely. They could generate cash every time they cycle through, eventually becoming a sustainable, long term business model.”
The benefits of a mineral leasing model
Pitt says an opportunity exists to generate longer term recurring revenue streams that move away from a life-of-mine model and to a life-of end product model.
“This would typically enable around 10 years of rental income after virgin material has entered the system before an end-of-life battery returns,” he says.
“Deferred cash flows from a leasing model for the new urban miners would enable them to pass on a lower ultimate cost of product through sub-leasing arrangements, to cathode material, to battery, to EV.
“Over time, overall product costs should reduce as recycled content percentages increase, needing only to recover incremental costs to recycle. This is what the cathode players are already banking on in their closed loop system strategies.”
Pitt says this system should further incentivise increased sustainability of battery products, as the economics of returning minerals for reprocessing will drive the environmental footprint down to the bare minimum involved to reprocess.
“It also offers a different perspective on supply chain security and control,” he says.
“Bans on certain material exports – as we’ve seen recently in China and Indonesia – could be reconceived if the original resource owner remains the owner, even after material has left the border.
“This system is complex and would rely on a deep foundation of trust, to provide visibility and traceability of material flows around the world,” Pitt says. “Thankfully the technology already exists to track which materials go where today.”
Every option will play a role meeting demand for battery materials
As with energy transition being a multi-solution endeavour, Pitt believes there is no single approach to meeting growing demand for battery materials.
“We need to consider every available option,” he says. “There’s a role for greenfield mines. And there’s a role for recycling materials that are already in the system, too.
“The challenge for both traditional and emerging players supplying the battery value chain is how to participate in both greenfield and recycling opportunities in an integrated way.
“Boards should be evaluating the right balance to extract value from today’s linear economy while setting up their business to benefit from tomorrow’s circular economy.”
This article was reproduced with the permission of Worley, a lead sponsor of this year’s IMARC conference and exhibition in Sydney from October 29-31.
Spearmint More Than Doubles the Acreage of the George Lake South Antimony Project in New Brunswick, Canada
Spearmint Resources Inc. (CSE: SPMT) (OTC Pink: SPMTF) (FSE: A2AHL5) (the "Company" or "Spearmint") wishes to announce that it has more than doubled the acreage on the recently acquired George Lake South Antimony Project in New Brunswick, Canada. This project now consists of 4,722 contiguous acres prospective for antimony.
James Nelson, President of Spearmint, stated, "In light of the recent ban of antimony by China to the USA, we made this strategic acquisition increasing the size of the George Lake South Antimony Project. Management feels that antimony will be one of the most sought after resources in 2025 and we plan to pursue this space with vigor and are currently evaluating additional projects. Management is formulating a plan on the George Lake South Antimony Project, and management also intends to update the market on Spearmint's crypto diversification plan in the near future as well. These are truly exciting times for Spearmint and Spearmint shareholders."
Recently, China banned exports of critical minerals, including antimony, to the United States. As trade tensions escalate between the United States and China, this move clearly emphasizes the urgent need for Western nations to secure reliable long-term sources of these critical minerals, which are now at the forefront of the global supply chain crisis.
Antimony is an essential component in semi-conductors, battery storage technology, and has several military applications. Prices of antimony trioxide in Rotterdam had soared by 228 per cent since the beginning of the year to $39,000 a metric tonne on Nov. 28, as shown by data from information provider Argus. The move is a considerable escalation of tensions in supply chains where access to raw material units is already tight in the West.
This new project is in the direct vicinity of the Lake George Antimony Mine in New Brunswick which was operated intermittently from 1876 to 1996 and was once the largest primary antimony producer in North America. Antimony's primary uses are:
- Semiconductors and Electronics: The growing electronics and semiconductor industries require antimony, making it a critical material for technological development, including infrared sensors and components for military and aerospace uses.
- Battery Technology: Antimony is also used in lead-acid batteries and in emerging technologies, such as energy storage and lithium-ion battery enhancements, which is a significant driver of demand in the future.
- Flame Retardants: The demand for antimony remains strong due to its use in flame-retardant materials, which are essential in a wide range of products like textiles, electronics, and plastics. As safety regulations around fire-resistant materials become stricter, the need for antimony-based compounds continues to grow.
About Spearmint Resources Inc.
Spearmint holds the include four projects in Clayton Valley, Nevada: the 1,136-acre McGee lithium clay deposit, which has a resource estimate of 1,369,000 indicated tonnes and 723,000 inferred tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) for a total of 2,092,000 tonnes of LCE, directly bordering Pure Energy Minerals & Century Lithium Corp.; the 280-acre Elon lithium brine project, which has access to some of the deepest parts of the only lithium brine basin in production in North America; the 124-acre Green Clay lithium project; and the 248-acre Clayton Ridge gold project and now the 4,722 acre George Lake South Antimony Project in New Brunswick.
For a cautionary note and disclaimer on the crypto diversification, please refer to the news release dated November 12, 2024.
Qualified person for mining disclosure:
The technical contents of this release were reviewed and approved by Frank Bain, PGeo, a director of the company and qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.
This property was acquired via staking.
Contact Information
Tel: 1-604-646-6903
www.spearmintresources.ca
"James Nelson"
President
Spearmint Resources Inc.
High grade Assay Results Continue at Youanmi
West Australian gold exploration and development company, Rox Resources Limited (“Rox” or “the Company”) (ASX: RXL), has received the final batch of assays from its 11,000m DD and RC program at the Youanmi Gold Project in WA.
- The latest batch of assays have been received from the 11,000m drilling program (both diamond core and reverse circulation) at the high gold-grade Youanmi Gold Project, located centrally in Western Australia’s prolific gold fields
- The recently-completed infill/exploration program aimed to improve resource confidence and open up corridors for resource growth; to underpin the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS), and, additionally, provide sample material for ongoing metallurgical optimisation test-work for the DFS program
- Latest highlights from the program include:
- RXDD131: 4.38m @ 19.07 g/t Au from 387.98m,
- incl. 1.73m @ 41.43 g/t Au from 389.96m
- RXDD119: 4.56m @ 14.60 g/t Au from 220.64m
- RXDD115: 2.99m @ 21.11 g/t Au from 249.88m
- RXDD119: 4.0m @ 7.37 g/t Au from 162.0m
- RXDD132: 7.19m @ 3.90 g/t Au from 263.61m
- RXDD133: 2.83m @ 6.53 g/t Au from 431.00m
- RXDD128: 3.82m @ 4.51 g/t Au from 364.59m,
- incl. 1.73m @ 8.22 g/t Au from 364.59m
- incl. 1.73m @ 8.22 g/t Au from 364.59m
- RXDD122: 0.95m @ 13.50 g/t Au from 204.44m
- §These results further demonstrate the continuity of high- grade gold mineralisation along the Youanmi greenstone belt belt, and the potential for resource growth both at depth and along-strike, with discovery potential to the south
- 35,000m Step-up drill campaign well underway with the plan to bring forward ounces and increase the mine plan
The program focused on converting Inferred stopes at Pollard, United North and Youanmi Main to higher confidence Indicated classification and providing material for metallurgical testing for the upcoming Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) – on track for H2 CY25.
This final consignment of diamond assay results are the fourth batch of assays results returned from the drill program and have been entirely drilled from the Pollard, Youanmi and United North areas (Figure 1).
Rox Resources’ Chief Executive Officer, Phillip Wilding, commented:
“It’s pleasing to round out the 11,000m RD and DD drilling program with another batch of excellent intercepts.
“More importantly, the program has significantly improved our knowledge of the high grade and underexplored Youanmi ore system, and shown that mineralisation remains open at depth.
“Next steps are to convert Inferred areas of the Resource to the higher confidence Indicated classification, and finalise key intercepts of sample material for metallurgical test work to feed into the Youanmi DFS.
“We are excited to have commenced the 35,000m Step-up program to potentially bring forward ounces in the mine plan and significantly increase the size of the Pollard ore zone.”
Youanmi Major Growth Drill program
Resource drilling has focused on converting selected Inferred stopes in the current Mineral Resource of 16.2Mt at 4.4g/t Au for 2.3Moz (Indicated: 10.7Mt at 4.5g/t Au for 1.6 Moz : Inferred 5.5Mt at 4.2g/t Au for 0.7 Moz) 1 to higher confidence Indicated classification at Pollard, United North and Youanmi Main as shown in plan on Figure 1. The drilling has also provided both sample material for metallurgical testing and valuable geological data for the pending Definitive Feasibility Study (“DFS”) planned for second half of 2025.
Figure 1: Plan view of the Youanmi Gold Project featuring drill hole collar locations and 2024 Resource outline overprinted on aerial photography
Outside of the immediate resource area, drilling was also conducted on near-mine exploration and focused on the Youanmi South prospect area, or Paddy’s Lode, first reporting high-grade intercepts in 20232. The drilling at Paddy’s has complimented the Company’s exploration strategy moving south along the Main Lode Shear Zone (MLSZ) and adding additional gold ounces to the Resource. Youanmi South has the potential to grow the Resource above the 103kozpa Production Target outlined in the recently completed Pre-Feasibility Study (“PFS”)3.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Rox Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Drilling Commenced at Viani in Fiji
Alice Queen Limited (ASX:AQX) (“Alice Queen” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that drilling has commenced at its 100% owned Viani Project in Vanua Levu, Fiji (see Image 1). The initial planned three-hole diamond drilling program will test for high-grade epithermal gold-style mineralisation intersected at the Viani Project by historic drilling.
HIGHLIGHTS
- The Phase 1, three-hole diamond drilling program has commenced at the Viani Project, Fiji and will test for extensions to the quartz vein gold mineralisation at depth.
- Phase 1 is expected to be completed in early 2025, with plans for additional drilling under the same program dependent on the initial results
- The Viani Project (SPL1513) covers an area of approximately 200km2 and is largely underexplored.
- At the Dakuniba prospect within Viani, low sulphidation epithermal high-grade gold mineralisation has been mapped over >3km strike length.
- Diamond drilling completed by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in 1995 to 1997 intersected high-grade gold in low sulphidation epithermal quartz veins, including 0.6m @ 27.6 g/t Au.
With drilling underway, Alice Queen is positioned to test the epithermal gold-style mineralisation identified in historic drilling at the Viani Project. Weather permitting, we anticipate completing the Phase 1, three-hole diamond drilling program in early 2025. Following this, our exploration team will mobilise the drill rig to the Sabeto Project in Fiji to maintain the momentum of this campaign. To deliver timely results to shareholders, we intend to accelerate the analysis of the drill core at ALS Brisbane.”
Image 1 – Diamond drilling at Viani
Details
Geology
The geology of the Viani Project (SPL 1513) comprises olivine basalts and volcaniclastics of the Natewa Volcanic Group which are intruded by andesite sills and dykes. In the 1940s, gold mineralisation was found by local prospectors near the village of Dakuniba. At Dakuniba, low sulphidation style epithermal gold occurs in quartz veins, and silicified rocks along a 3km long NE trending zone.
In 1995-1997, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) drilled six diamond holes at Dakuniba and intersected high-grade gold in chalcedonic, crustiform, colloform banded quartz veins at depths of 50m to 100m below surface (i.e. MJVFV-5 intersected 2.2m @ 11.3 g/t Au, incl 0.6m @ 27.6 g/t Au at 121m downhole). This high-grade gold mineralisation is open in all directions.
Proposed Drill program
The initial Phase 1 drill program at Viani (see Table 1) will comprise three diamond drillholes designed to test continuity to the epithermal gold mineralisation previously intersected in JICA drillhole MJVFV- 5 (2.2m @ 11.3 g/t Au) (see Figure 2). The drilling will test for extensions to the gold mineralisation at depth and along strike.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Alice Queen Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
FireFly Drills its Best Hole Yet with Assay of 86.3m at 3.7% CuEq
Latest drilling returns very thick intersections with exceptional grades, outlining a rich area of mineralistion which will form part of the next Resource update
FireFly Metals Ltd (ASX: FFM) (“Company” or “Firefly”) is pleased to announce its best assays yet at the Green Bay copper-gold project.
- Latest drilling at the Ming Mine within the Green Bay Project returns spectacular results which support the Company’s strategy to continue growing the Resource (currently 59Mt at 2% CuEq; see ASX release dated 29 October 2024)
- There are two distinct styles of mineralisation at Ming; upper copper-gold rich Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide (‘VMS’) lenses above a broad copper footwall stringer zone (‘FWZ’)
- The latest drilling reveals strong FWZ mineralisation directly below the high-grade VMS; This has resulted in continuous copper-gold intersections which are both wide (~true thickness) and high-grade, including drill holes:
- 86.3m @ 3.7% CuEq 1 (3.1% Cu & 0.6g/t Au) in hole MUG24-079
Intersection includes two distinct VMS lodes grading 15.5m @ 4.6% CuEq and 9.9m @ 5.8% CuEq above a broad copper FWZ intersection with a high-grade core of 27.6m @ 5.3% CuEq
- 76.3m @ 2.9% CuEq (2.4% Cu & 0.5g/t Au) in hole MUG24-073
Intersection includes an upper VMS lode grading 20.1m @ 6.1% CuEq above multiple FWZ intersections including 24.0m @ 2.6% CuEq and 11.0m @ 2.4% CuEq
- Other notable assays received subsequent to the completion of the October 2024 Resource update include (~true thickness):
- 7.9m @ 3.8% CuEq (1.1% Cu & 2.9g/t Au) VMS zone MUG24-070
- 21.0m @ 1.8% CuEq and 21.9m @ 1.9% CuEq and 19.7m @ 2.0% CuEq FWZ zone MUG24-070
- 50.9m @ 1.7% CuEq (1.6% Cu & 0.1g/t Au) FWZ zone MUG24-069
- Both the high-grade massive sulphide zones and broad footwall stringer zones remain open, with downhole geophysical surveys indicating likely extensions to the mineralisation
FireFly Managing Director Steve Parsons said: “These exceptional new results highlight both the quality and ongoing growth potential at Green Bay.
”The results, which come from some of the deepest holes drilled to date, are world-class, demonstrating exceptionally high grades over huge true widths. They will be included in the next Resource update.
“The Resource remains open, and we will continue to add value through the drill bit by continuing to grow and infill what is already a high-grade and large-scale copper deposit”.
The results highlight the huge scope for ongoing growth in the Resource, which already stands at 59Mt @ 2% for 1.2Mt of contained copper metal equivalent.
These reported intersections were received after the October 2024 Resource update.
There are two distinct styles of mineralisation at the Ming underground mine at Green Bay. One comprises the upper copper-gold rich Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide (‘VMS’) lenses. This sits above a broad copper stringer zone known as the Footwall Zone (‘FWZ’).
Drilling at the margins of the current Resource show the development of a strong copper-rich footwall zone directly beneath the upper VMS lenses. In other parts of the deposit the separation of the VMS and FWZ can exceed 50 metres. Their convergence has resulted in thick and consistent high-grade copper and gold intersections which are amongst the best mineralised results returned from the deposit to date. Highlights include 86.3m @ 3.7% CuEq (~true thickness) made up of two separate VMS intersections of 15.5m @ 4.6% CuEq and 9.9m @ 5.8% CuEq above a thick FWZ mineralised zone with a core of 27.6m @ 5.3% CuEq.
Both the high-grade massive sulphide zones and broad footwall stringer zones remain open, with downhole geophysical surveys indicating probable extensions to the mineralisation pointing to future resource growth.
The Company will continue with its strategy of Resource growth at Ming with exploration development continuing to position drill rigs to deliver Resource growth during 2025. Four rigs continue to drill underground as part of the fully-funded 130,000m campaign designed to deliver both additional Resource extensions and infill drilling to increase confidence in the Inferred areas of the current estimate.
FireFly is well funded with ~A$88M in cash at the end of October 2024.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Firefly Metals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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