Cyclone Metals Limited (ASX: CLE) (Cyclone or the Company) is pleased to report the results of the first phase of metallurgical test work performed on its flagship Block 103 / Iron Bear Magnetite Iron Ore Project (Block 103 / Iron Bear) in Canada.
- Blast furnace magnetite concentrate produced grading 68.7% Fe with very low deleterious elements and silica below 3.5%
- Very high recovery > 97% for magnetite Fe
- The current market price for this class leading blast furnace magnetite concentrate is USD 159/t CFR China1 – representing a premium of 25 USD/t above the 62% Fe benchmark
- Sediment bulk sample of 1.6t used with magnetic Fe of 17%; representative of overall deposit which has an average magnetic Fe of 18%
- Flow sheet for production of blast furnace grade concentrate being defined with high yields, recovery rates and low grinding costs
- Specifications of Block 103/ Iron Bear base blast furnace concentrate are class leading with high Fe and low silica, alumina and deleterious elements
- Metallurgical test work is ongoing to define a Block 103 / Iron Bear premium direct reduction (DR) magnetite concentrate with Fe of 70% and silica below 1.5% to enable ultra-low carbon steel production
Cyclone CEO, Paul Berend, commented: “We have achieved a major milestone in the development of our flagship Iron Bear Project by demonstrating that we can easily produce a class leading 68.7% Fe grade iron ore product with a 97% magnetite recovery. Given the massive scale of the deposit, the access to rail and port infrastructure, this is starting to look like the future. We are working hard to define a premium ultra-low silica direct reduction magnetite product which will be very attractive to European steel makers looking to reduce their carbon footprint. We are targeting to introduce this unique premium product to the steel industry as early as first quarter next year.”
Flash Operational Update
Cyclone is pleased to report that it is currently on track to achieve all its SOAP (Strategy On A Page) operational milestones planned in calendar year 2023, specifically milestones 4 and 5.
Work is currently ongoing to produce a premium DR grade magnetite concentrate (milestone 4) leveraging reverse flotation and other separation methods to reduce the levels of silica whilst maintaining high Fe recovery levels. The outcome of this metallurgical test work is anticipated by mid- December 2023, and if successful, would potentially make Block 103/ Iron Bear one of a handful of iron ore producers with the capability to produce premium DR grade concentrates.
Concurrently, we are also working to upgrade the mineral resource (milestone 5), in terms of size, and more importantly quality. Specifically, we are aiming to upgrade a portion of the mineral resource to JORC indicated status. Cyclone has been able to locate a high-quality magnetic survey of its Block 103 claims and we are working with Perth-based, Resource Potentials, to correlate this data with the existing drilling results and to leverage this to upgrade the mineral resource. This is a complex endeavour, and the outcome remains uncertain. However, if successful, this endeavour would enable Cyclone to forego a costly drilling program.
Cyclone is committed to being transparent with stakeholders and investors and will update progress on the SOAP on a regular basis.
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