Column: Trump 2.0 won’t reverse Biden’s critical minerals push
Donald Trump has described the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) as a "green scam" and vowed to repeal it after he returns to the White House in January.
Silver Elephant Mining (TSX: ELEF) has filed its first 43-101 resource estimate for its Minago nickel project, located in the Thompson Nickel belt in northern Manitoba. The report has an effective date of July 2.
The property contains measured and indicated open pit resources of 23.9 million tonnes averaging 0.71% nickel and an inferred resource of 2.1 million tonnes at 0.57% nickel, with a cut-off of 0.25% nickel. The underground measured and indicated resource is 20.3 million tonnes averaging 0.77% nickel plus 17.5 million inferred tonnes at 0.76% nickel, with a cut-off of 0.5% nickel.
Combining open pit and underground resources, Minago has 44.2 million measured and indicated tonnes grading 0.74% for 721.6 million lb. nickel, and 19.6 million inferred tonnes at 0.74% nickel for 319.1 million lb. nickel.
A feasibility study prepared for Victory Nickel in 2010 called for a concentrator flowsheet that would take feed grading 0.4-0.6% nickel and produce an 18-34% nickel concentrate with a nickel recovery rate of 52-58%.
Silver Elephant acquired the Minago project in February from Victory Nickel for approximately $6.7 million. A provincial environment act licence was issued for the project in August, but a notice of assessment regarding changes to the tailings management facility to address First Nation concerns has yet to be completed for a 10,000-t/d open pit and mill. Silver Elephant will address this in 2021.
The company is also re-engaging with local First Nations to update memorandums of understanding signed by the former owner. Silver Elephant is currently examining the means of create a low carbon operation.
(This article first appeared in The Northern Miner)
