Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Ahead of the prefeasibility study due in September, FPX Nickel (TSXV: FPX) says recent metallurgical tests have increased the recovery of nickel from samples taken at the Baptiste nickel project by 4%, to 88.7% compared to 84.7% in the 2020 preliminary economic assessment. The results were based on Davis tube recoverable (DTR) testing.
The company points to its results as further validation of DTR testing as a geometallurigical screening tool.
The optimized concentrator flowsheet for Baptiste ore includes primary grinding and three stages of magnetic separation followed by regrinding and a fourth stage of magnetic separation. This will be followed by flotation to recover an awaruite concentrate. The float tails will be leached to recover dissolved nickel in nickel sulphate and a cobalt precipitate.
The Baptiste deposit in British Columbia is part of FPX’s 100%-owned Decar nickel project. The 2020 PEA included 2.0 million indicated tonnes grading 0.122% DTR nickel, containing 2.4 million tonnes of metal and 592,890 inferred tonnes at 0.144% DTR nickel, containing 675,885 tonnes of metal.
