Bushveld Minerals Ltd Operational Update – Vametco Mine

Bushveld Minerals Limited (LON:BMN), a mineral project development company with a portfolio of vanadium and coal assets in Southern Africa and an investment in tin, yesterday announced revised Mineral Resource Estimates and Ore Reserves for Bushveld Vametco Alloys (Proprietary) Limited’s primary vanadium mine (the “Vametco Mine”) in Northwest Province, South Africa.

Following the acquisition of an effective 26 per cent stake in the Vametco vanadium mine in April 2017, the Company’s geologists have been working with the Vametco Mine’s management to identify improvement opportunities at the mine.  The focus has been on enhancing grade control to ensure higher head grades, and thus greater vanadium throughputs into the vanadium processing plant. As part of this process, a complete review of previous Mineral Resource Estimates and Reserve declarations has been completed. Revised Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve Estimates have been undertaken by The MSA Group and reported in accordance with the JORC Code (2012). 

Fortune Mojapelo, CEO of Bushveld Minerals, said:

“We have always believed in the value proposition of bringing our geological expertise alongside the processing expertise of the Vametco Mine’s management team. The interrogation of the Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves at the Vametco Mine has shown that the revised average vanadium grades for the reserves are more in line with realised vanadium grades of the concentrate fed into the kiln.  This gives us even greater confidence about the operating efficiencies of the Vametco ore preparation/concentrating plant as we look to complete the second phase of the capacity expansion project. We anticipate further work to continue improving geological knowledge at the mine and to increase operating efficiency and overall profitability at the operation.”

Highlights

During this process, a number of historic drillholes were identified as having erroneous assay data, including vanadium values inconsistent with those reported during mining operations at Vametco Mine. These erroneous drillholes have been discarded from the database used for modelling and a revised Mineral Resource has been estimated. Using this updated Mineral Resource, Ore Reserves for the mine have also been updated. The following highlights are noted:

·      Revised Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve numbers more accurately reflect actual grades achieved at Vametco Mine

·      Total reported Mineral Resource tonnages for all three magnetite seams have increased slightly from 138.62Mt to 142.4Mt

Upper Seam:

–  Inferred Mineral Resources have increased in tonnage from 8.45Mt to 11.8Mt

–  Magnetite percentage increasing from 23.56% to 37.86%

–  V₂O₅ in magnetite increasing from 0.71% to 1.70%

Intermediate Seam:

–  Indicated Mineral Resources are no longer reported, and Mineral Resources are all in the Inferred category

–  Mineral Resources have increased slightly from 19.94Mt to 21.60Mt

–  Magnetite percentage decreasing from 34.01% to 30.45%

–  V₂O₅ in magnetite decreasing from 2.35% to 1.87%

–  Ore Reserves are no longer reported for the Intermediate Seam (previously 0.35Mt of Probable Reserves were reported for this seam)

Lower Seam:

–  Both Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources are reported

–  Indicated Mineral Resource tonnages have increased from 34.80Mt to 61.5Mt

–  Indicated magnetite percentage decreasing from 29.64% to 27.23%

–  Indicated V₂O₅ in magnetite decreasing from 2.48% to 2.01%

–  Inferred Mineral Resource tonnages have decreased from 75.43Mt to 47.40Mt

–  Inferred magnetite percentage increasing marginally from 29.09% to 29.75%

–  Inferred V₂O₅ in magnetite decreasing marginally from 2.02% to 1.99%

–  Ore Reserve tonnages decreased from 26.42Mt to 26.12Mt

–  Magnetite reserves percentage decreases from 29.76% to 26.79%

–  V₂O₅ in magnetite reserves decreasing from 2.54% to 1.96%

These revised estimates are the first step in ongoing improvements in geological control at the Vametco mine operation. Further work by the Bushveld Minerals geological team is expected to more accurately delineate areas of Ore Reserves and to use this information to improve grade control (and thereby reduce operating costs) at Vametco mine.

Table 1: Mineral Resource Estimate for Vametco Mine as at 06 October 2017

Note: The operator of the mine is Bushveld Vametco Holdings (Pty) Limited

No cut-off grades have been applied owing to the consistency and uniformity of the Vametco mineralised seams

Mineral Resources are inclusive of Ore Reserves

Table 2: Ore Reserve Statement for Vametco Mine as at 16 October 2017

Note: The operator of the mine is Bushveld Vametco Holdings (Pty) Limited.

The above figures assume a cut-off grade of 0.164 V₂O₅ % contained in magnetite.