EMC Metals and Jervois Mining Ltd. Receive the NI 43-101 Technical Report for
the Nyngan Gilgai Scandium Deposit
TSX: EMC
VANCOUVER, March 30 /CNW/ - EMC Metals Corp. (TSX:EMC) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received a NI 43-101 technical report and mineral resource estimate for its Nyngan Gilgai Scandium property in New South Wales, Australia. EMC is developing this property in a joint venture with Jervois Mining Ltd. (Jervois) of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The full report will be filed with SEDAR.
Mr. Willem Duyvesteyn, an EMC director and its Chief Technical Officer added: "We believe that the development of this Scandium ore body could not have come at a more timely moment. Governments worldwide are advocating clean energy and one of the technologies that is gaining widespread acceptance is the rapid development of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells. These fuel cells are using yttria stabilized zirconia as an electrolyte. For optimum performance, these cells run at an operating temperature of more than 800 degrees Celsius, resulting in a short cell life due to anode and/or cathode deterioration. Scandia stabilized zirconia will not only reduce the operating temperature by several hundred degrees, but recently has been shown to more than double the power density (and hence substantially lower capital costs) as compared with conventional electrolyte materials for SOFC's. This was recently confirmed by ESL Electroscience (http://www.electroscience.com/). SOFC are expected to provide a major role in the developing fuel cell powered electric transportation industry (cars, trucks, trains, etc) as well as in stationary applications, using SOFCs as electricity generators in substitution of coal fired power plants or directly in the home/small business through a distributed power generating system."
The following resource estimate has been calculated for the Nyngan Gilgai deposit:
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Resource Category Cut -off Sc Total Tonnes Grade Sc Overburden Ratio
(ppm) (ppm)
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Measured 100 2,718,000 274 0.81:1
Indicated 100 9,294,000 258 1.40:1
Total 100 12,012,000 261 1.10:1
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Notes: From NI43-101 Technical Report on the Nyngan Gilgai Scandium Project, Jervois Mining Limited, New South Whales, Australia. (Rangcott et al. 2010). This resource has been prepared to comply with NI43-101 and JORC Code - Joint Ore Reserves Committee of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Resource calculation prepared by Douglas McKenna and Partners and signed off by Duncan Pursell (BSc, MAusIMM) and Derek Foster B. (Appl. Sc (Applied Geology), MAusIMM). The resource calculation is based on a total of 2,638 meters of drilling in 69 drill holes, of which 64 holes were reverse circulation and 5 were air core. The Gilgai laterite resource is covered by a minimum of 15 meters of Quaternary-aged alluvials. The significant resource is not below 65m and the entire resource is amenable to open pit mining. Assays for this program, by ALS Chemex, used the following methods: ME-ICP61s up to 27 elements 4 acid digest ICP-AES PGM - MS23 Pt, Pd, Au 30g FA ICP-MS. QC checks on sampling and assaying quality are satisfactory. In-situ densities: Limonite 1.63 g/cm3, Saprolite 1.41 g/cm3. Scandium resource was calculated by plan polygonal method. The reported mineral resource estimate has been rounded to appropriate significant figures.
The Nyngan Deposit
The Nyngan Deposit is located approximately 500 kilometers northwest of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and is accessible via a 25km sealed road from the town of Nyngan.
Scandium mineralization at Nyngan is hosted within the lateritic zone of the Gilgai Intrusion, one of several Alaskan-type mafic and ultramafic bodies which intrude Cambrian-Ordovician metasediments collectively called the Girilambone Group. The laterite zone, locally up to 40 meters thick, is layered with hematitic clay at the surface followed by limonitic clay, saprolitic clay, weathered bedrock and finally fresh bedrock. The scandium mineralization is concentrated within the hematitic, limonitic, and saprolitic zones with values up to 350ppm Sc and an average grade of 261ppm Sc. The Nyngan deposit is a near-surface ((less than)65m depth) laterite, amenable to open pit mining.
Processing
A preliminary treatment process, recovering over 80% of the Scandium, has been established by Australia's prestigious CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Research Organization). As part of its agreement with Jervois, EMC is spending a minimum amount of AUD$500,000 refining this process, building on a technology that its wholly owned subsidiary TTS (The Technology Store) had previously developed for recovery of Scandium from nickel solutions. Roberts & Schaefer of Salt Lake City, Utah is assisting EMC in the first phase of this effort.
Project Timeline Targets
EMC and Jervois have set the following targets:
1. Beginning June 2010 an extensive metallurgical program will be
carried out to refine and/or modify the existing flow sheet for the
recovery of the Scandium from the ore. It is anticipated that this
program will be completed late 2010/early 2011.
2. Following the completion of the metallurgical test work, a
feasibility study will be carried out. It is anticipated that this
study might be completed in the latter half of 2011. The feasibility
study will define the commercial viability of the project. It will
include the following items:
- A flow sheet
- Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P & I Ds)
- General Plant Layouts
- An estimate of Capital Expenditures, and an estimate of Operating
Expenditures
3. Subject to financing, the design, engineering, and construction of a
100 - 200 ton per day commercial plant producing from 10 to 20 tons
of Scandium oxide per year at 99.99% purity, with a start-up target
of mid to late 2012.
Scandium Uses
In 2009, scandium was primarily used to produce high-strength aluminum-scandium alloys. These lightweight alloys were used in high-end sporting equipment such as baseball and softball bats, bicycle frames, and golf clubs as well as minor components for the aerospace industry.
An emerging market for scandium lies within the energy industry with the development of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs). SOFCs are devices that produce electricity directly from oxidizing a fuel using a solid oxide, or ceramic, electrolyte.
World Scandium Production
Present production figures for Scandium are hard to come by, but vary from 2 to 10 tons per year. Currently the main suppliers of Scandium are China, Russia and the Ukraine. There are no primary producers in these countries and the Scandium is recovered solely as byproducts from other process streams, mainly from uranium, tungsten, tin and titanium production. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) in its latest report (January, 2010) quotes a price of US$1,400 per kilogram of Sc(2)O(3) for the four previous years.
Technical information in this news release has been reviewed by Gilles R. Dessureau, M.Sc. P.Geo a Qualified Person for the purposes of NI 43-101. The resource calculation was prepared by Duncan Pursell (BSc, MAusIMM) and Derek Foster B. (Appl. Sc (Applied Geology), MAusIMM). Max Rangott, of Rangott Mineral Exploration Pty. Ltd. is the Independent Qualified Person as defined by NI43-101 who reviewed the Technical Report.
About EMC Metals
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EMC Metals is focused on sustainable growth through the development and application of technology for specialty and exotic metals. Through successful business developments, EMC intends to utilize its patented technologies to further its efforts in maximizing opportunities in a number of specialty metals including the Nyngan Scandium Joint Venture with Jervois Mining Ltd. of Melbourne, Australia while also planning for future opportunities from its Carlin Vanadium Project, Fostung Tungsten Project and Springer Tungsten Facility.
No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. This press release contains projections and forward-looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and EMC's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Except as required by law, EMC assumes no obligation to update forward-looking information should circumstances or management's estimates or opinions change.
For further information: EMC Metals Corp., Investor Relations: (604) 648-4653 or [email protected]
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