The lujavrite series within the Ilimaussaq\ Complex is at least 500 m thick and are generally fine-grained and laminated but there are locally some medium to coarse-grained pegmatoidal varieties. Black (arfvedsonite bearing) lujavrite is the rock type that hosts REE, uranium, and zinc multi-element mineralisation. Economic REE and uranium grades occur in the uppermost sections of the lujavrites, and are associated with distinct ore minerals. Mineralisation is predominantly orthomagmatic, with metal enrichment a function of differentiation of the lujavrite magma.

Steenstrupine is the most important host to both REEs and uranium in the lujavrite-hosted deposits. It is a complex sodic phospho silicate mineral. Mineralogical studies suggest that steenstrupine commonly contains between 0.2% and 1% U3 O8 , and greater than 15% total rare earth oxide. Steenstrupine is the dominant host to both uranium and REEs. The phosphorous in the mineral structure makes steenstrupine amenable to concentration by conventional flotation techniques.

The grain size of the steenstrupine commonly ranges from 75 µm to over 500 µm. Other minerals that are important hosts to REEs include the phosphate mineral vitusite and, to a lesser extent, britholite, lovozerite group minerals and rare monazite. Aside from steenstrupine, uranium is also hosted in zirconium silicate minerals of the lovozerite group. In these silicates a portion of the zirconium is substituted by several hundred ppm each of uranium, yttrium, REEs and tin. Zinc is hosted in the sulphide mineral sphalerite, which is the dominant sulphide, disseminated throughout the deposits.

Several substantial deposits of multi-element mineralisation (REEs, uranium, zinc) are hosted in the lujavrites of the northern Ilimaussaq Complex. A world-class multi-element resource has been established at Kvanefjeld, and substantial new satellite deposits have recently been confirmed at Sørensen and Zone 3. Geological evidence suggests that Sørensen and Zone 3 represent outcropping, or nearsurface expressions of a mineralised system that extends over several kilometres from Kvanefjeld, and is interconnected at depth. This is endorsed by exploratory drill holes that demonstrate that mineralisation is widespread outside the defined mineral resources.

The mining operations involve conventional open pit mining via blasting followed by truck/shovel haulage. Ore will be transported to a concentrator to produce rare earth phosphate concentrate (REP), zinc concentrate and fluorspar. The zinc concentrate and fluorspar will be sold and the REP further processed in a refinery to produce REE products and uranium oxide. All saleable products will be transported to the Port and exported. Overburden from the mine will be stored in a waste rock stockpile (WRS). Tailings from the concentrator and refinery will be stored within a tailings storage facility (TSF).

The mine has been designed in consideration of its environmental setting. The Kvanefjeld deposit is located on a plateau at an elevation of 600 m, with the orebody outcropping at surface and the highest grade material occurring in the upper zones.

The mine will have an open pit design with 10 m wide benches. Mining will be a standard drill blasttruck-shovel operation. This configuration has been identified as the lowest operating risk mining method, both in terms of cost and productivity. Ore will initially be hauled to the run of mine (ROM) pad located adjacent to the pit where it will be arranged in stockpiles. Ore selected from individual piles will be blended using a front end loader and the blended ore will be hauled in mine trucks to the concentrator, with an average haul distance of 1.5 km. The trucks will dump ore directly into the primary crusher.

The active mining fleet will initially include three 150 t mining trucks and one excavator. As the pit deepens and haul distances increase, truck numbers will increase to a maximum of six.

The mine will have a low stripping ratio (unit of waste material moved per unit of ore) with expected ratio of only one. Waste material is barren natural rock overlying the ore in a mine. On average approximately 3.0 Mtpa of waste will be transported to the WRS. The WRS has been located to the north west of the mine as this location offers a relatively short, downgrade haul and good access to the maximum height of the east side of the dump.

The Project includes two separate processing facilities; a concentrator (which involves physical processes) and a refinery (which uses chemical processes) which together comprise the Plant. The Plant will operate for 365 days per year and 24 hours per day. Prior to flotation, the ore passes through a crushing and milling circuit in which the ore particles are reduced in size to the consistency of fine sand [80% passing 75 microns]. This size optimises the efficiency at which particles of value minerals in the ore are liberated from the relatively barren host rock.

The concentrator produces two saleable products, zinc concentrate and fluorspar, and an REP concentrate, which moves to the refinery for further processing. Approximately 80% of the REEs are recovered into the REP.

REP concentrate from the concentrator is pumped via a pipeline to the adjacent refinery. The refinery is comprised of three sections;
- acid leaching;
- uranium recovery; and
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