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South Africa

Mokopane Project

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Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StagePre-Feasibility
Commodities
  • Vanadium
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Mokopane project includes one of the world’s largest primary vanadium resources, with an average grade of 1.80 percent V2O5 in-magnetite.

Mokopane Project has not commenced mining a year after receiving mining right. Application to the DMRE for an extension to commence mining activities has been submitted, and a response is awaited.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Bushveld Minerals Ltd. 64 % Indirect
Bushveld Minerals owns 64% of Pamish Investments, and the remaining 36% is held by Izingwe Capital (Pty) Limited, a 51% black economic empowered company.

15 December 2023 - Further to the Company's announcement on 11 September 2023, Bushveld Minerals Limited is pleased to announce it has entered into a definitive agreement for the acquisition of 64% of the issued shares in Pamish Investments No. 39 Proprietary Limited ("Mokopane"), by Southern Point Resources - Fund 1 SA L.P., represented by its general partner, SPR GP1 Proprietary Limited, for an acquisition price of US$3.7 million.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • VMS

Summary:

The Project Area is situated within the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex (BC) and covers the upper portion of the Main Zone (MZ) and the entire Upper Zone (UZ) of the Rustenburg Layered Suite (RLS). The UZ is approximately 1,250 m thick and dips gently (15° to 25°) to the west. The UZ is characterised by the presence of vanadiferous titano-magnetite (VTM) layers hosted predominantly by VTM-enriched gabbro, gabbronorite, leuconorite, anorthosite and olivine diorite. The VTM layers include disseminated, semi-massive and massive VTM intervals of variable thicknesses and variable proportions of oxide (Ti-magnetite) and silicate minerals (feldspar, pyroxene and olivine).

The RLS is the World’s largest and economically most important layered complex and is known for the remarkable geological and geochemical continuity of the magmatic stratigraphy. In common with other layered intrusions, such as the Great Dyke in Zimbabwe (Wilson, 1997), Molopo Farms Complex in Botswana (Reichhardt, 1994) and the Stillwater Complex in the USA (Irvine et al., 1983), the intrusive ultramafic to mafic magma has undergone a differentiation process which has resulted in the formation of magnesium-, chromium-, nickel- and precious metal-rich units in the lower portion of the RLS with iron-, titanium-, vanadium- and phosphorus-rich layers in the upper portion.

The UZ consists of numerous cyclic units of alternating and well-layered rocks and is subdivided
into three subzones:
* Subzone A is dominated by gabbroic rocks,
* Subzone B is dominated by the presence of modal olivine in the rocks; and
* Subzone C is dominated by the presence of modal apatite in the rocks.

The rocks of the RLS show remarkable continuity and individual layers can generally be traced along strike for tens of kilometres.

Since 2010, exploration by BML focussed on the Main Magnetite Layer (MML) and the stratigraphically higher semi-massive to massive Ti-magnetite layers N, O, P and Q. The P and Q VTM layers together with their enclosing gabbroic host rocks, which can contain considerable quantities of disseminated VTM, have been collectively termed the P-Q Zone.

The Project is based on the three mineralised layers associated with the MML which is part of the UZ of the BC. These are the MML, the MML Hanging Wall (MML HW) and the AB Zone located in the footwall of the MML.

The MML mineralised zone occurs near the base of the UZ and consists of an upper VTM-rich interval (MAG3) which is separated from a lower VTM-rich interval (MAG4) by a VTM-poorer leucogabbronorite “parting”. The MML was intersected during the 2010 to 2013 exploration programme in 13 vertical drillholes, and has an average true thickness of 9.8 m, including the VTMpoor parting, and dips between 18° and 24° to the west. The MAG3 ranges between 2.59 m and 7.65 m and averages 4.09 m in true thickness. The MAG4 ranges between 2.48 m and 6.30 m and averages 3.59 m in true thickness. The parting ranges from 0.93 m to 4.06 m and averages 2.16 m
in true thickness.

The MML HW comprises fourteen continuous layers defined by geological logging and VTM content, consisting of alternating layers of relatively high-grade semi-massive to massive VTM, lower-grade gabbronorite and barren anorthosite. These fourteen layers of the MML HW package are conformable with the MML and have a combined average true thickness of approximately 72 m.

The AB Zone represents the stratigraphically lowest accumulation of abundant VTM and occurs approximately 100 m below the MML near the base of the UZ of the RLS. The AB Zone consists of a relatively higher-grade upper and lower layer of strongly disseminated VTM, separated by a lower grade parting. The layers of the AB Zone have an average dip of 21° to the west with a combined average true thickness of approximately 9.3 m.

The Scoping Study undertaken in July 2014 and this Pre-Feasibility Study have been based on the MML only. It is anticipated that the lower grade MML HW layers in the immediate hanging wall of the MML which forms part of the stripping during the mining of the MML, will be stock piled for potential future processing.

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
V2O5 lbs 21
All production numbers are expressed as flake.

Operational metrics

Metrics
Annual ore mining rate 952,000 t *
Annual production capacity 672,600 t of vanadium concentrate *
Annual processing capacity 1,000,000 t *
Ore tonnes mined, LOM 28.6 Mt *
* According to 2015 study.

Production Costs

CommodityUnitsEstimated
Total cash costs V2O5 USD 3.28 / lb *  USD
Assumed price V2O5 USD 7.5 / lb *  USD
* According to 2015 study / presentation.

Operating Costs

Currency2024
OP mining costs ($/t milled) USD 13.3 *  USD
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2015 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Initial CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Gross revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Pre-tax NPV @ 9% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 9% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Pre-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscribe
After-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscribe
After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscribe

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 21, 2023

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