Overview

Mine Type	Open Pit
Stage	Permitting
Commodities	Scandium Nickel Cobalt Platinum
Mining Method	Truck & Shovel / Loader
Mine Life	...
Snapshot	The Burra (Platina Scandium) Project is one of the world’s highest-grade scandium deposits and has potential to be Australia’s first scandium producer with platinum, cobalt and nickel credits. It will be a small, shallow, open-cut operation with a minimum footprint, and no tailings dam, blasting or extensive water use. This will allow Rio Tinto to consider a full electric operation with renewables. Currently Rio Tinto updates the feasibility study after the previous owner and works on securing necessary permits and approvals.

Deposit type

• Laterite

Summary:

The mineralisation at the Red Heart mine site comprises a laterite profile developed over a Devonian age Alaskan-style intrusive complex that can be divided into a mafic-felsic series (monzonite) and an ultramafic series. The ultramafic series comprises dunite-wehrlite, olivine-pyroxenites and olivine-clinopyroxenite rocks. The relative abundance of nickel, cobalt, scandium and platinum in these ultramafic rocks has been enriched to higher grades in the laterite profile due to either a residual or supergene enrichment processes. The variations in element abundance in the original ultramafic basement rock affect the enriched concentrations in the laterite along with the development of the laterite and any erosion of the laterite profile. The types of laterite-hosted mineralisation identified thus far show strong correlations with certain lithologies, including platinum-copper mineralisation overlying dunite-wehrlite rocks with variable cobalt, nickel and gold content; cobalt-nickel mineralisation with platinum credits associated with the underlying olivine pyroxenites; and elevated chrome and scandium has been noted where dunite-wehrlite lithologies predominate but mainly occur with clinopyroxenite lithologies. The lateralisation process developed in the past over a long period of leaching which removed some elements and concentrated others by residual processes. Movement of water can also result in dissolution and precipitation of some elements by supergene processes. The Red Heart area is relatively flat and supergene enrichment appears to only result in vertical enrichment within the profile as there is no evidence of significant lateral movement or enrichment. Much of the Mineral Resource is covered by alluvial or fill material comprised of quartz gravel, sands and other transported material. Mineralogical analysis performed on various in-situ samples across the mineralisation footprint have verified that scandium ore is hosted within a goethite (15-42%) and hematite (15-40%) matrix. The mineralisation within the laterite profile typically extends down to 30 metres depth from the surface with limited overburden removal required. Mineralisation within the deposit remains open in all directions.

Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Production

Operational metrics

Personnel

Job Title	Name	Profile	Ref. Date
.......................	.......................		May 15, 2024
.......................	.......................		Dec 13, 2018
.......................	.......................		May 15, 2024

Total Workforce	Year
......	2018