Golden Deeps reports high-grade vanadium, zinc, copper and lead find at Abenab in Namibia


Golden Deeps Limited says the gravity test work done at its Abenab project in Namibia produced exceptionally high-grade vanadium with zinc, lead and copper concentrate.

The Australian company owns exclusive prospecting licences 5496 and 3543 in the Otavi Mountain Land Copper District near Tsumeb town.

Abenab Project's inferred mineral resource estimate is 2.80Mt @ 0.66% vanadium ore, 2.35% lead, and 0.94% zinc at a 0.2% vanadium ore cut-off. 

Historically, the Abenab mine holds the world's richest and largest deposit of vanadate ore, producing 176kt of 16% vanadium oxide (V2O5), 13% zinc (Zn), and 42% lead (Pb) concentrate from the 1920s to the 1950s.

In an ASX announcement on Thursday, 12 Jan., Golden Deeps said the upgrade factor is above the targeted multiple of 15x and concentrate grades similar to historical concentrate production grades.

The company also said earlier Phase 1 hydrometallurgical test work demonstrated vanadium extraction rates of up to 95% and high extraction of lead, zinc and copper from a lower grade concentrate feed generated from surface stockpiles and tailings. 

According to Golden Deeps, the Phase 2 test work will further develop the flowsheet for hydrometallurgical processing of the high-grade vanadium, lead, zinc and copper concentrate to produce high-value vanadium products and recover zinc, lead and potentially copper by-products. 

The company will use the outcomes of the gravity concentrate test work and the downstream hydrometallurgical test work to process cost inputs to be integrated with a new resource model for the Abenab deposit.

An upgraded mining study by Bara Consulting will be used to produce a scoping study for staged mining, gravity concentration and downstream processing of the high-grade Abenab high-grade vanadium, zinc, and lead resource.

Golden Deeps said there is an opportunity to integrate mining and a two-stage processing project for Abenab and the Nosib Block (about 20km from Abenab), where high-grade copper, vanadium and lead were discovered.

Golden Deeps chief executive officer Jon Dugdale said the outstanding vanadium plus zinc, lead and copper concentrate grades produced from test work on the Abenab deposit represent a breakthrough.

Dugdale said the test work results open the door to replicating the process for the Nosib discovery and then completing downstream hydrometallurgical test work to produce high-value battery metals products for the rapidly growing renewable energy battery storage industries globally. 

“The results will also feed directly into our integrated mine development and processing study – a key stepping-stone towards realising our goal of developing products from the company’s near-surface, high-grade vanadium with copper, lead, zinc and silver deposits in the Otavi Mountain Land of northern Namibia,” Dugdale said.

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