Overview
Status | Inactive / Suspended |
Mine Type | Open Pit |
Commodities |
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Mining Method |
|
Processing |
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Mine Life | 25 years (as of Jan 1, 2018) |
9 April 2020 – Current market conditions have led Mason Graphite Inc. (“Mason Graphite” or “the Company”) to re-prioritize its projects. Therefore, Mason Graphite announces that the second transformation project (coated spherical graphite) has become the priority of the Company while the first transformation project (mine and concentrator) has been postponed.
Given the current oversupply of graphite on world markets and the unfavourable capital market conditions for natural resources projects, the Company has decided to postpone, until further notice, the development of the Lac Guéret mine and concentrator (first transformation project). As a result of this decision, Mason Graphite is forced to downsize its team dedicated to the engineering and construction of the first transformation project. |
Latest News | Mason Graphite Inc.: Value Added Product Project Becomes Priority, Mine And Concentrator Project Put On Hold April 9, 2020 |
Source:
p. 71
The Lac Guéret property covers an area of 8,570 hectares, all of which are 100% in the interest of Mason Graphite with the claims (162 claims) in good standing until July 17, 2019.
Summary:
The regional geology includes the most southwesterly of several elongate anticlinoria of Gagnon Group metasediments that include the traditional iron formation stratigraphy of the Wabush-MontReed iron district. These units are metamorphosed equivalents of the Labrador Trough (New Québec Orogen) sediments that occur around Schefferville, Québec and north. The southwest Manicouagan Anticlinorium shows a core of Denault Formation (Fm) dolomitic marble which lies beneath the Sokoman iron formation level, deposited on a platform of Katsao Fm pelitic metasediments. The Sokoman Fm (iron chemical sediments) overly the Denault Fm. Quartz-rich non/low oxide, iron-oxide, and silicate facies of the Sokoman Fm form infolded synclines and anticlines. The Sokoman Fm quartzite non-oxide facies overlies the iron oxide-bearing facies. The top of the Sokoman Fm has a diachronous, transitional contact with the overlying Menihek Fm pelitic sediments.
Graphitic metasediments are concentrated in the Lac Guéret Member above the Sokoman Fm iron deposits. Graphite also occurs in minor amounts in the adjoining Sokoman Fm near the contact, but most of the potentially economic graphite lies within the Member. This relationship is common in the district with examples at Lac Knife (QC) and the Mart Lake graphite showing at the Kami iron deposit (Labrador City, NL). Graphite formed as beds within clastic sedimentary basinal deposition under anoxic conditions that preserved the organic carbon and precipitated primary sulphides, mainly pyrrhotite, which is intimately intermixed with the graphite. Sulphides are limited to this depositional regime and do not occur in the host rocks outside of the graphite deposits. Upper amphibolite (kyanite facies) metamorphism affected all the rocks.
Graphite of Unit 1 (5-10% Cg) and Unit 2 (10-25% Cg) forms fine to coarse crystal flakes (<0.01 to >4 mm diameter) in quartz and quartzofeldspathic gneiss and schist. The in-situ organic material was concentrated during the post-Labrador Trough deposition and re-crystallised during the Grenville orogeny. It does not appear to have been enriched by tectonics and only locally and smallscale by hydrothermal remobilisation. The grade limits used in this report are based on the statistical distribution of carbon presented in a study by Denis Marcotte that suggests that the deposit comprises three distinct populations with threshold values of 5%, 10%, and 24.5% (Marcotte, 2013).
The depth of the mineralization is uncertain and the deepest mineralized zone of the Lac Guéret Project is reached by the hole LG 455 (Z = 220 m). It seems that the folded graphite bands are constrained within a broad inclined envelope. This envelope is the actual outline of the deposit.
Summary:
The mining method selected for the Project is a conventional open pit, truck and shovel, drill and blast operation. Vegetation, topsoil and overburden will be stripped and stockpiled for future reclamation use. The ore and waste rock will be mined with 10 m high benches, drilled, blasted and loaded into articulated haul trucks with a hydraulic excavator.
The mine will be operated by a 100% owner-operated fleet, seven days per week and ten hours per day. The operations will run for ten months of the year with a two-month shutdown from April to May during the spring thaw season; if required mining operations will be conducted during the spring season.
The ore will be hauled to the run of mine (ROM) pad located within one km of the pit and dumped directly into the hopper of the primary crusher. The ore will then be discharged by a conveyor belt into the crushed ore stockpile. A front end wheel loader will load the ore haulage trucks which will transport the ore from the mine site to the plant site in Baie-Comeau. The transportation of the ore from the mine to Baie-Comeau will be done during the ten-month period, seven days per week; if required, transport during the thaw period will be possible but at reduced truck capacity.
Source:
Summary:
The ore mined at Lac Guéret will undergo the following steps:
1. Crushing;
2. Road transportation between Lac Guéret and Baie-Comeau;
3. Primary grinding and rougher flotation;
4. Secondary grinding and scavenger flotation;
5. Polishing grinding and cleaning flotation;
6. Thickening, filtration and drying;
7. Commercial sieving;
8. Packaging.
The full concentration plant will comprise one crusher, six grinding mills, 12 flotation cells, eight flotation columns, six wet screens, three thickeners, two press filters, one dryer, one scrubber, four dry screens, three bulk bags loaders and one small bag loader.
Reagents used for the concentration process are: collector, frother and dispersant. Hydrated lime, flocculent and caustic soda will also be required.
Water recycling will be maximized as most of the process water will be recovered from the thickeners. Potable water will be used as make up water.
Tai ........

Recoveries & Grades:
Commodity | Parameter | Avg. LOM |
Graphite
|
Recovery Rate, %
| ......  |
Graphite
|
Head Grade, %
| 27.8 |
Graphite
|
Concentrate Grade, %
| ......  |
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Projected Production:
Commodity | Units | Avg. Annual | LOM |
Graphite
|
kt
| 52 | 1,297 |
All production numbers are expressed as concentrate.
Operational Metrics:
Metrics | |
Stripping / waste ratio
| ......  |
Annual mining capacity
| ......  |
Waste tonnes, LOM
| ......  |
Ore tonnes mined, LOM
| ......  |
Total tonnes mined, LOM
| ......  |
Annual processing rate
| ......  |
* According to 2018 study.
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Reserves at December 5, 2018:
Category | Tonnage | Commodity | Grade | Contained Graphite |
Proven
|
2,003,000 t
|
Graphite
|
25.1 %
|
502,000 t
|
Probable
|
2,738,000 t
|
Graphite
|
29.8 %
|
815,000 t
|
Proven & Probable
|
4,741,000 t
|
Graphite
|
27.8 %
|
1,317,000 t
|
Measured
|
19,021,000 t
|
Graphite
|
17.9 %
|
|
Indicated
|
46,519,000 t
|
Graphite
|
16.9 %
|
|
Measured & Indicated
|
65,540,000 t
|
Graphite
|
17.2 %
|
|
Inferred
|
17,613,000 t
|
Graphite
|
17.3 %
|
|
Corporate Filings & Presentations:
Document | Year |
...................................
|
2018
|
...................................
|
2018
|
Feasibility Study Report
|
2016
|
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News:
Aerial view:
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