Sheffield PFS improves Thunderbird zinc recoveries

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Sheffield Resources (ASX: SFX) is progressing the current pre-feasibility study being carried out on the company’s 100 per cent-owned Thunderbird mineral sands project in northwest Western Australia.

The company announced the Study has achieved encouraging results from metallurgical testwork and process engineering.

According to Sheffield the recent work has resulted in mproved recoveries of all products using full scale process equipment.

The overall recovery of zircon at thunderbird has increased by 5 per cent (to 67 per cent), with primary zircon representing 80 per cent of recovered zircon.

Sheffield said the testwork indicates the likely feasibility of co-disposal of polymer treated slimes and sand tails, which it expects will greatly assist water recovery and recycling.

The company indicated it believes this could result in a reduced operational footprint requirement for tailings disposal, therefore providing faster environmental rehabilitation.

Sheffield highlighted the metallurgical testwork, using full scale process equipment, has achieved higher recoveries of all products compared to those it obtained from its earlier scoping study testwork.

“These are very pleasing results, confirming the Thunderbird mineralisation can be treated using full scale equipment with improvements to mineral recoveries an added bonus,” Sheffield Resources managing director Bruce McQuitty said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“The five per cent increase in zircon recovery and the high percentage (80%) of primary zircon is particularly significant because zircon is the main revenue driver for the project.

“Our metallurgical consultants have excelled in this round of testwork and we expect further process optimisation will continue to achieve incremental improvements in recoveries.

“The tailings co-disposal results are also very favourable, indicating the likely feasibility of co-disposal of slimes and sand tails which will increase the recovery of water to be re-used in processing.

“The results of geotechnical investigations confirm the amenability of the deposit to mining whilst hydrogeological studies have shown that suitable groundwater for processing occurs adjacent to the deposit.”

Website: www.sheffieldresources.com.au