Globe Metals & Mining Ltd (ASX:GBE) has received further encouraging results from test work on concentrate from the Kanyika Niobium Project in Malawi with niobium/tantalum extracted and separated using environmentally sustainable chlorination refining.
The second part of the metallurgical results on the chlorination test work also confirm that niobium/tantalum products contain no radiation as the radioactive materials are removed in the refining process.
Testing to date has also extracted and separated more than 94% of the key rare earth elements (REE) as by-products of the niobium and tantalum refining process.
“Immense promise”
“We are very pleased with the progress made in the metallurgical test work conducted so far," Globe’s CEO Grant Hudson said.
"The successful flotation concentration of Kanyika ore, as announced recently, and the refinement of the concentrate through the environmentally conscious chlorination process, hold immense promise for Globe.
"Both the extraction and separation of all key metals have now been demonstrated as technically feasible, further bolstering our confidence in the process.”
About the tests
Globe is continuing to conduct test work on concentrate produced in 2014. The first part of the metallurgical results on the extraction results of >99% for niobium and tantalum were announced in late October 2023.
The metallurgical test work is focused on two key steps – the extraction of metals from the Kanyika concentrate; and the separation of the metals (as chlorides) and subsequent purification and oxidation of the metals to high-purity saleable products.
As a result of the tests, Globe has this month embarked on the production of small-scale (gram scale) marketing samples.
Pilot plant commissioning
In another important milestone for the company and the Kanyika Project, the larger pilot plant refinery which is under construction at Resonant Group in Johannesburg, South Africa, is expected to be commissioned and operational next month.
This pilot plant will be processing concentrate at a scale exceeding 10 times that of the laboratory apparatus used in testing to date.
The aim of this plant will be to produce very high purity, optical-grade, 99.98% (kilogram-scale) niobium pentoxide, which will be provided to Globe’s key offtakers to assess.
"We are very excited about the upcoming commissioning of the refinery pilot plant and the production of high-purity marketing samples of niobium pentoxide, tantalum pentoxide and rare earth element by-products for key industry offtake partners. This marks a major step forward in the development of our Kanyika project,” Hudson said.
Once the oxide product is produced, Globe will be well-positioned to finalise discussions with key industry offtakers, a major step forward in the development of Kanyika.
The oxide market includes all oxide grades from standard grade up to optical grades of 99.98% niobium pentoxide, thus facilitating prices better than US$50 per kilogram.
Kanyika products
Kanyika has the potential to become the first new globally significant niobium mine in 50 years, with an average nameplate production of 3,267 tonnes per annum (tpa) of niobium pentoxide and 136 tpa of tantalum pentoxide over the 27-year life of operations.
These products will be high-specification high-purity products with grades exceeding 99.5% and 99% respectively.
Standard niobium oxide is being used in the anodes of fast charging batteries (charging to 100% in less than 10 minutes). These batteries have application in large vehicles that cannot afford excessive charging time.
They are also being used in batteries for handheld tools where fast charging is an advantage.
High-purity niobium is an integral component of daily-use, energy-related and specialty technologies such as superalloys (for example, for aircraft engines, rocket assemblies, etc) and superconducting magnets (for example, for medical imaging devices, and nuclear power generation).