Vanadium Resources (VR8) is set to acquire a 135-hectare industrial site to become its proposed salt roast plant (SRL) in Limpopo, South Africa.
The $2.9 million purchase is part of the company’s development plan for its Steelpoortdrift vanadium project in the area.
The proposed SRL lies within a 15 kilometres radius of the Steelpoortdrift mine and could produce up to 12,500 tonnes per annum of vanadium flake at an estimated capex of US$200 million (A$289 million).
Under today’s deal, Vanadium subsidiary VanRes will hold the option to purchase a portion of portion 15 of the Farm Tweefontein for ZAR33.5 million (A$2.9 million).
Vanadium is busy conducting a definitive feasibility study (DFS) for the Steelpoortdrift project, which it plans to finalise before the end of September
Executive Chairman Juris Wessels said the potential acquisition enabled the company to confidently proceed towards raising construction funding, assuming a positive result from the upcoming DFS.
“With this transaction, the company is able to leverage the optionality presented by having two sites of operation and, thereby, extract optimum operational, environmental, financing and efficiencies for its planned businesses: one focused on mining and initial beneficiation and the other on extraction, refining and industrial production.”
The proposed site is adjacent to a planned third-party water treatment facility and solar plant expected to serve the site and the existing mining operations in the area, bringing expected cost savings and ESG efficiencies.
The agreement is conditional upon the company procuring sufficient construction funding, obtaining all relevant permissions as required by the law and the rezoning of SRL site for industrial use, which has been procured by Kadoma.
Shares in Vanadium last traded at seven cents on August 18.
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