- Poseidon Nickel (POS) delays the completion of the 1.1 Mtpa bankable feasibility study for the Black Swan project in WA
- This is one of two feasibility studies being completed for the restart of the project, which has been shut down for over a decade
- Poseidon says that while metallurgical results have been positive, further tests are required to achieve the best offtake terms, delaying the BFS to the December quarter
- Meanwhile, Poseidon has advanced pre-production works, signed water and grid power agreements, and plans to commence drilling in November to convert inferred resources to the indicated category
- Company shares are down 6.25 per cent to trade at 4.5 cents at 12:32 pm AEST
Poseidon Nickel (POS) has once again delayed the completion of its bankable feasibility study for the Black Swan project in Western Australia.
The company is undertaking two bankable feasibility studies (BFS), with one to explore a 1.1-million-tonne-per-annum (Mtpa) operation and the other to potentially increase the throughput of the concentrator to 2.2 Mtpa.
These studies are supporting the restart of the Black Swan project, which has been shut down since 2009. The project comprises the Silver Swan open pit mine, the Black Swan open pit mine and the Black Swan concentrator.
As part of the study work, Poseidon has been conducting metallurgical tests, with positive results received from locked-cycle flotation tests.
The testwork indicated that adding a regrind circuit using the existing Silver Swan ball mill would improve the nickel grade and reduce the magnesium oxide content by around five per cent for potential offtake customers.
As a result of this, the company has once again pushed back the completion of the 1.1 Mtpa BFS, which was originally expected to be in June this year before being delayed to September.
“Following the recent metallurgical breakthrough, further optimisation testwork is required to finalise study assumptions and confirm concentrate specifications to achieve the best offtake terms,” Managing Director and CEO Peter Harold said.
“The board and management team acknowledge that this additional work has delayed the feasibility study delivery date, which will frustrate some shareholders. However, this work is absolutely necessary to ensure the most economically attractive and de-risked option for restarting Black Swan is determined,” Mr Harold said.
The 1.1 Mtpa BFS is now targeted to be completed in the December quarter.
Poseidon Nickel is also progressing the 2.2 Mtpa rougher concentrate study with further infill resource drilling required to convert more inferred resources to the indicated category. The company expects this drilling will begin in November once the pit has been dewatered.
In addition, pre-production works are well advanced and the company has signed a five-year water access agreement with Norton Goldfields and grid power from Western Power which are set to provide significant operating cost and environmental benefits.
Company shares were down 6.25 per cent to trade at 4.5 cents at 12:32 pm AEST.