Energizer Resources Provides Update on the Development of Its Green Giant Vanadium Project
Energizer Resources Inc. provides an update on the development of its 100% wholly-owned Green Giant vanadium project located in Madagascar.
Two Tranches of Non-brokered Private Placement Completed
As previously announced in its February 2, 2011 and February 9, 2011 press releases, the Company has completed two tranches of its non-brokered private placement totaling U.S.$12,402,745. With these funds, the Company is well capitalized as it moves forward with its National Instrument 43-101 preliminary economic assessment, which will include advanced metallurgical test work to further optimize the process flow sheet developed from test work completed in 2010 by SGS Lakefield.
Metallurgy – up to 82% vanadium recovery
The Company is providing the following summary regarding the unique characteristics of the Green Giant vanadium deposit and the resulting metallurgy test results to date to provide greater clarification:
– the geology of the Green Giant deposit is unlike most of the vanadium mines currently in operation or scheduled to come into production in the near term – the Green Giant vanadium is sediment-hosted, in contrast to the magnetite-hosted deposits, and as a result, the metallurgical process for the Green Giant project is expected to be different and the project is expected to produce high purity vanadium pentoxide used in
both the steel and battery industries
– metallurgical test work conducted to date by SGS Lakefield in Canada and Mintec Laboratories in South Africa have extracted up to 82% vanadium in
a clean liquor using a pre-roast and alkaline pressure leaching process
– given its unique geology, physical beneficiation (or upgrading) of the vanadium-bearing ore is not an essential component of the process flow sheet – in fact, based on internal economic analysis, even without physical beneficiation, the operating costs of our Green Giant project
is expected to be comparable to the magnetite-hosted vanadium producers.
George Annandale, a world-renowned vanadium expert, and consultant to the Company, said, “Armed with the promising results from the metallurgical test work conducted by SGS Lakefield, I am confident that we will be able to optimize the conditions of the pre-roast and alkaline pressure leaching process to further enhance the economics of the project. The Green Giant project is well on its way to becoming one of the world’s largest producers of vanadium.”
Taking Advantage of Infrastructure Synergies
Given the nature and location of the Green Giant vanadium project, the infrastructure needs of the project can be met with a combination of upgrading of existing infrastructure, which consists of existing secondary roads and operational ports, and the build-out of site-specific infrastructure such as power generation. However, given the progress of the nearby Sakoa coal project, the Green Giant project is poised to benefit from any infrastructure enhancements that may be made by the coal project whereby further enhancing the economics of the Green Giant vanadium project.
The Company was recently informed that the operators of the Sakoa coal project have sent out requests for proposals for the construction of the project. The Company will continue its dialogue with the operators of the coal project to determine what infrastructure synergies may be available which would further enhance the economics of the Green Giant vanadium project.
About the Green Giant Vanadium Project
The Green Giant vanadium project, located in Madagascar, is 100% owned by Energizer. The Company has a National Instrument 43-101 compliant indicated resource estimate of 49.5 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.693% vanadium pentoxide (“V2O5″) containing 756.3 million pounds of V2O5 and an inferred resource of 9.7 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.632% V2O5 containing 134.5 million pounds of V2O5. With this resource estimate, the Green Giant deposit currently ranks as the third largest known vanadium deposit in the world, with 75% of the 21-kilometre (18 mile) stratigraphic trend of vanadium remaining open for drilling.
