Mining Intelligence and News
Greenland

Dundas Project

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Categories

Overview

Mine TypeSurface
StagePermitting
Commodities
  • Ilmenite
Mining Method
  • Surface miner
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Dundas Ilmenite Project, fully permitted for production since 2020 after securing all required approvals from the Government of Greenland, remains a vital asset for 80 Mile Plc. With a Master Distribution Agreement for up to 340,000 tonnes of ilmenite annually and strong potential for additional resources, Dundas is a cornerstone project. Exploration continues in the region, targeting significant mineralisation, including copper and titanium, to extend the mine’s life.

In 2023, the resource estimate was downgraded to 29.7 Mt at 4.2% ilmenite due to flaws in the 2022 drilling campaign, including unsuitable methods and poor oversight. A review by new management deemed the results unreliable compared to prior data, leading to the reinstatement of the 2019 estimate of 117 Mt at 6.1% ilmenite, reflecting a more accurate assessment of the project’s potential.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
80 Mile Plc 100 % Indirect
80 Mile owns 100% of the Dundas Ilmenite Project under its subsidiary Dundas Titanium A/S in Greenland.

Deposit type

  • Placer
  • Mineral sands

Summary:

The Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland ("GEUS") has estimated that 10 billion tonnes of ilmenite exist in the original rock within the entire Thule region, with a further 7 billion tonnes of ilmenite present in the form of placer ilmenite.

The “black sand” ilmenite deposits along this south-facing stretch of coastline on Greenland’s Steensby Land peninsula are quite unusual in that they remain relatively proximal to the original source rock in the raised hinterland. It is likely that a combination of glacial and fluvial erosion has deposited the heavy minerals at the coast, where the action of the waves and changing sea-levels along with the high specific gravity of the material has over time led to more concentrated ilmenite-bearing deposits.

Other heavy minerals in the black sand in the Dundas project area include magnetite (iron-oxide mineral), pyroxene and amphibole (silicate minerals). Additionally, the black sands in the project area also contain a high proportion of lighter coloured and less dense ‘normal sand’ minerals such as quartz, feldspars and micas. All sand minerals in the Dundas project area are non-harmful, not toxic, and do not contain radioactive isotopes.

The mineralised zones at Dundas broadly cover four types of terrain:
- Raised Beaches: refers to the dunes up to the base of the escarpment, containing ilmenite accumulations over widths of more than 1km, of unknown depths, along more than 30km of coastline.
- Active Beaches: refers to the area seaward of the frontal dunes, including the beach, tidal zones and surf zone
- Drowned Beaches: refers to the areas seaward of active beaches, i.e. submerged mineral sand deposits on the seabed.
- Iterlak Delta: refers to deltaic heavy mineral deposits discovered in the Iterlak estuary area.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Production

CommodityUnitsAvg. Annual
Ilmenite kt 440
All production numbers are expressed as concentrate.

Operational metrics

Metrics
Annual ore mining rate 7.4 Mt *
Annual processing rate 7.4 Mt *
* According to 2019 study.

Production Costs

CommodityUnitsAverage
C3 fully allocated costs Ilmenite USD 113 / t *  
Assumed price Ilmenite USD 232 / t *  
* According to 2019 study / presentation.

Operating Costs

CurrencyAverage
OP mining costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
Processing costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
G&A ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2019 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Total CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
OP OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Processing OpEx $M USD 57.7
G&A costs $M USD 60.9
Total OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 5% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscribe

Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Jan 24, 2025
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Jan 24, 2025

Total WorkforceYear
...... Subscription required 2019

Aerial view:

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