Blackstone Update on Refinery Byproduct Offtake Strategy

Blackstone Minerals Limited (ASX: BSX) (“Blackstone” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce an update to its recent refinery byproduct offtake MOU announcement.

KEY POINTS

• Blackstone Minerals Limited (“Blackstone” or the “Company”) has progressed the Ta Khoa Refinery (“TKR” or “Project”) byproduct offtake strategy (refer ASX announcement 21 December 2023). The Company has signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with three Vietnamese companies to sell Ta Khoa Refinery byproducts, being manganese sulphate (or epsomite) and sodium sulphate. The identified companies include Vietnam Chemical Group (“VinaChem”), PV Chemical and Equipment Corporation (“PVChem”) and Nam Phong Green Joint Stock Company (“Nam Phong”);
• The offtake arrangements would create a pathway for Ta Khoa Refinery byproducts to enter the market as well as significantly improve revenues for the Ta Khoa Project, thus improving project financial credentials and operating costs (net of byproduct credits);
• The identified companies are also chemical suppliers, capable of suppling the necessary reagents to the Ta Khoa Refinery to convert nickel sulphide concentrate (and other intermediate products) into precursor cathode active material (“pCAM”) NCM811;
• Blackstone has signed a non-binding MOU with Development for Resources Environmental Technology Joint Stock Company (“DRET”) to investigate opportunities to repurpose and trade waste material (or residue) from the Ta Khoa Refinery into construction material products;
• Execution of residue offtake agreement/s will yield significant cost savings for the Project as it will reduce capex associated with on site storage requirements and improve revenue.

For a video summary of the announcement head to the Blackstone Investor Hub

https://investorhub.blackstoneminerals.com.au/link/4PK1xe

Byproduct Offtake & Reagent Supply Agreements

The Company has signed non-binding MOUs with three Vietnamese companies to develop opportunities to trade byproducts produced from its Vietnamese Ta Khoa Refinery.

The refinery will produce three different byproducts, these are:

• copper cathode (LME grade),
• magnesium sulphate in the form of epsomite,
• sodium sulphate.

The TKR prefeasibility study did not consider epsomite and sodium sulphate as ‘cash generating’. The inclusion of epsomite and sodium sulphate as a saleable byproduct will improve revenues for the TKR DFS, thus improving project financial credentials and operating costs (net of byproduct credits).

The engaged companies will use TKR byproducts to produce products such as fertiliser, detergents, construction materials and other chemical products. These products are then used in Vietnamese and global industries such as, but not limited to, agriculture, construction, industrial cleaning products, medical, textile, chemical, paper and glass manufacture.

Importantly, the engaged companies can take the full amount produced by the refinery. The Companies confirmed the byproduct volumes produced from the refinery are only a small portion of what is currently being imported into Vietnam, demonstrating offtake security. Blackstone believes it has a competitive advantage to displace the imported epsomite and sodium sulphate products given its location within Vietnam.

Click here for the full ASX Release

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