Junior explorer Surefire Resources (ASX: SRN) has commissioned Perth-based METS Engineering to conduct further metallurgical testwork on samples from its wholly-owned Victory Bore vanadium project in Western Australia.
The company aims to produce a high-purity vanadium oxide in liquid form from which a clean high-purity vanadium electrolyte can be recovered for use in Australasia’s emerging vanadium battery sector.
Following a review of metallurgical results from the Victory Bore deposit, Surefire concluded that the magnetite hosts relatively clean intrinsic vanadium, which should enable a simpler and cleaner separation in processing.
METS Engineering was selected for its depth of advanced metallurgical experience in the assessment of WA’s vanadium deposits and extraction processes.
Commenting on the upcoming work, Surefire managing director Paul Burton said it could define an “exciting new pathway” for the “world class” Victory Bore deposit.
“With more focus from financiers and partners on good ESG credentials the company’s strategy in looking to add value by exploring the streamlining of vanadium recovery by focussing on the battery market, while also exploring the recovery of HPA (high purity alumina), makes sound environmental and commercial sense,” Mr Burton added.
HPA study
The METS Engineering work will be conducted in parallel with a separate study by Canberra-based mineral sciences company Lava Blue into the potential for producing HPA from waste and host rock at Victory Bore.
If successful, the study could see the incorporation of a HPA commodity stream to the vanadium stream, potentially adding considerable value to the project’s financial metrics.
Results from the metallurgical testwork and the HPA study will be incorporated into a current pre-feasibility study (PFS) for Victory Bore.
Victory Bore
The Victory Bore vanadium and critical minerals project covers approximately 87.5 square kilometres across two exploration licences which are wholly-owned by Surefire.
It secures an approximate 25km strike length of near-contiguous vanadiferous magnetite defined from aeromagnetic data, drilling and outcrop which is believed to be unprecedented in WA.
Surefire is progressing Victory Bore at a time when global markets are experiencing increasing demand for vanadium.
The company is currently completing an economic assessment as part of the PFS.
Resource upgrade
In March, an independent assessment confirmed a significant upgrade of vanadium resources in exploration targets at tenements within the Victory Bore acreage.
The assessment calculated the project’s exploration target estimate as being between 682 million tonnes and 1.19 billion tonnes grading up to 0.43% vanadium oxide and excluding existing JORC resources.
The new target is reported to have propelled the project to world-class status.
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