EANS-News: Tantalus Rare Earths AG
Ionic Clay Potential (with document)
03.02.2012 – 10:32
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Corporate news transmitted by euro adhoc. The issuer/originator is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Company Information/Update on the progress at the company's Rare Earths Project Düsseldorf (euro adhoc) - TANTALUS RARE EARTHS AG February 2012 Press Release (Düsseldorf, 03. February 2012; Tantalus Rare Earths AG) David Rigoll, Managing Director of Tantalus Rare Earths AG, is pleased to announce the following update on the progress at the company's TRE Rare Earths Project in Madagascar. 1. Background and Potential Tantalus Rare Earths AG holds Exploration Licences over 768 individual contiguous blocks situated on the eastern half of the Ampasindava Peninsular in Madagascar. These are collectively referred to as the "Licences". The total size of the Licences is 300 km2. Of this total licence area, the maiden resource of 130Mt of inferred Resources, announced by the company in December 2011, only relates to about 14 km2. This initial resource contained 104kt of Rare Earth Oxides (REO). An additional 20 km2 was drilled late in 2011 and these results are currently being processed. This is expected to more than double the resource tonnage at the time of the next resource upgrade, which is now planned for late April 2012. The above areas have been drilled at 200m x 200m spacing, which is adequate to support a JORC Inferred Resource category. An estimated further 150Mt of mineralisation was "Unclassified" at the time of the December Resource statement, as these areas had only been drilled at a spacing of 500m x 500m. The continuity of the mineralisation in these areas is encouraging and the company will be infilling these areas during the second and third quarters of 2012 to bring this material into the Inferred Resource category. This will be achieved by a combination of pitting and the use of highly portable window sample drills. In combination with the results from the 2011 drilling programme, the company expects to be able to increase the Inferred Resources to over 400Mt containing approximately 350kt of REO by the end of September this year. The overall potential of the Tantalus tenements is massive. All indications to date are that the regolith, which contains the mineralisation in the weathered zone above the bedrock, extends over most of the Licences. Given the 300km2 area of the Licences, the full potential of the mineralisation in the regolith alone could be over 2Bt. 2. Target Areas The southern section of the Tantalus tenement area has been sub-divided into several Target Areas. Due to technical reasons the map of the target areas is only attached to this release as a PDF. The map above shows these Target Areas and the relationship between the holes and pits for which results are already available and those for which sampling and assaying is in progress. The density of available information in Target Area 1 is already adequate for the full area to be classified as Inferred Resources. Target Area 2 is a new area for which no resources were included in the December 2011 Resource Statement. Results from drilling last year are expected to add a further 60Mt of new resources from this area. The Befitina Target Area to the west of the sections, which have been explored to date, continues to show potential. Once drilling is able to restart in April, after the wet season, the focus will be in the northern section of Target Area 4, called the 'Caldera'. Drilling is this area has confirmed the presence of good grades and continuity of mineralisation. However, the drill spacing of 500m x 500m is not adequate to support an Inferred Resource and a further 400 holes or pits will be required to bring this material into that JORC category. The field work and associated analysis is expected to be completed in time for another major resource upgrade to be announced in late September. 3. Ionic Clay Potential. The largest producers of the more valuable HREO's, are in the southern China "ionic clay" deposits. The ability of these low-grade ores to release the REE through a simple low cost ionic exchange mechanism and to produce carbonate concentrates is the key to their attractive economics. Far lower REO grades can be viable in these types of materials than in hard rock Rare Earth deposits. A critical success factor for the Tantalus TRE Project has therefore been to demonstrate that the mineralisation in the regolith has "ionic clay" properties. This was initially confirmed by testwork carried out in mid 2011 by a major Chinese company. Tantalus is pleased to be able to announce that these preliminary results have now been confirmed by further testwork carried out in China, by a major western producer of REO's, on samples from various parts of the Tantalus regolith mineralisation. Further testwork is planned to determine the correlation between the processing characteristics and the mineralogy of the mineralisation and to determine the optimum practical processing techniques for use in a future extraction operation. 4. Individual REO Grades The full SRK report to accompany the maiden resource statement issued in December has been received. SRK have produced estimates of the individual REO grades based on block modelling techniques. Due to technical reasons the table of the preliminary SRK results is only attached to this release as a PDF. The following conclusions can be drawn from these preliminary results: - As indicated in previous announcements, the HREO proportion is around 20% which is very positive for the project - There is evidence of higher TREO and HREO grades and lower U+Th grades in the lower Saprolitic clay layers, compared to the overlying ferruginous material. Again, this is positive, as the Saprolitic Clays appear to be more amenable to ionic exchange processing techniques. - There is potential for higher-grade areas within the overall and widespread extent of the Lateritic Clays. Once more closely defined, these higher grade areas will be the targets for the initial mining operations 5. Location and Infrastructure The project location and characteristics present a number of positive factors, which will contribute to the successful implementation of the project: - The project location and the simplicity of the operation will significantly reduce infrastructure requirements. - Low power demand (no crushing and grinding of hard rock) means that site generated power is feasible. - Raw materials can be supplied directly by sea and products exported from a simple jetty structure - Labour force numbers will be relatively low. The Malagasy government is keen to encourage major new mining project investments and has established the necessary approvals processes to facilitate such development. Large mining projects have recently been permitted and constructed in Madagascar by Rio Tinto and Sherritt. 6. Key Success Factors The five key success factors for any new Rare Earths project. These are: - Location + - Ionic clays + - Infrastructure + - Low Radionuclides + - High HREO content + - High upside potential + Work in the last three months has continued to confirm our confidence that the TRE Project "ticks all the boxes" for a successful new Rare Earths Project. This is shaping up to be a world-class deposit, which could be brought into production on a short lead-time and at relatively low capital costs. 2012 promises to be a very exciting year both for the company and for the TRE Project. About Tantalus Rare Earths ("TRE") TRE is a German incorporated holding company whose subsidiaries are engaged in the exploration and development of rare earths. TRE's shares are quoted on the Open Market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. TRE's principal asset is an exploration project located in north-western Madagascar and comprises rare earth-tantalum-niobium-zirconium-hafnium enriched dykes and sills and Rare Earth Element ("REE") bearing Lateritic Clays derived from the weathering of underlying alkaline intrusives. There are numerous indications that most of the alkaline intrusive bodies within the concession are overlain by REE bearing Lateritic Clays. TRE is therefore considering the whole area underlain by alkaline intrusives (150 to 170 sq km) as prospective for secondary REE mineralisation in the weathering crust. The exploration programme aims to define the primary (vein/skarn hosted) and secondary (argillaceous Laterites) mineralisation present on the concession towards a JORC compliant mineral resource estimate and support a initiation of the staged technical and economic studies which could lead to mine development and production. Tantalus Rare Earths AG Berliner Allee 12 40212 Düsseldorf Deutschland Telefon: +49 (0) 211 52391 430 Telefax: +49 (0) 211 52391 200 e-Mail: contact [at] tre-ag.com Internet: http://www.tre-ag.com Attachments with Announcement: ---------------------------------------------- http://resources.euroadhoc.com/us/STaKiRSX http://resources.euroadhoc.com/us/dulFrVCB Further inquiry note: Für weitere Informationen kontaktieren Sie bitte: Peter Davies, Technical Direktor Tel: +61 (0) 40 929 6676 Email: davies@tre-ag.com} Ana Ribeiro Blythe Weigh Communications Tel: +44 (0) 207 138 3206 or +44 (0) 7980 321 505 end of announcement euro adhoc -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Attachments with Announcement: ---------------------------------------------- http://resources.euroadhoc.com/us/STaKiRSX http://resources.euroadhoc.com/us/dulFrVCB company: Tantalus Rare Earths AG Berliner Allee 12 D-40212 Düsseldorf phone: +49 (0)211 52391 430 FAX: +49 (0)211 52391 200 mail: contact [at] tre-ag.com WWW: http://www.tre-ag.com sector: Holding companies ISIN: DE000A0SMSL4, DE000A1KRQE7 indexes: stockmarkets: free trade/entry standard: Frankfurt language: English