Robust Flanagan Bore Scoping Study, high-grade drill results: Black Canyon (ASX:BCA) sees exciting September quarter

Highlights

• Black Canyon (ASX:BCA) concluded a positive Flanagan Bore Scoping Study during September quarter, highlighting strong financial returns over a 20-year mine life.
• The Company concluded RC drilling at the project that delivered further thick drill intercepts at the LR1 and FB3 deposits.
• The Company believes that the doubling of the drill density would help in upgrading the existing Indicated Mineral Resources to the Measured category.
• BCA attained up to 91% manganese leach extraction in early-stage leaching testwork undertaken on a global composite sample from the project.

Western Australia-focused Black Canyon Limited (ASX:BCA) is a manganese explorer with projects located in the premiere mining jurisdiction of Pilbara region. The Company recently reported a busy and exciting September quarter, marked by significant milestones in terms of project development as well as downstream processing.

BCA’s Flanagan Bore manganese project has been a major highlight during the quarter, as a highly encouraging scoping study was completed. The project is a part of the Company’s Carawine JV, and is subject to a farm-in and joint venture agreement with Carawine Resources Ltd (ASX:CWX).

The Company ended the quarter with AU$3.03 million consolidated cash and no debt.

Flanagan Bore Scoping Study indicates strong financial metrics 

The scoping study completed during the quarter delivered positive results. The study was based on developing a mine approximately 115km northeast of Newman. The key project metrics from the scoping study include the following:

Source: BCA

The results indicate robust cashflow along with solid returns and a low capital start-up requirement to deliver manganese concentrate mined from a significant Indicated Mineral Resource of 104Mt @ 10.5% Mn containing 11Mt of manganese. This further comprises a higher-grade subset that involves an indicated Mineral Resource of 33Mt @ 12.8% Mn throughout the FB3 and LR1 deposits.

The 20-year life of mine is based on mining only in the first 11 years and 9 years of processing stored stockpiles. BCA believes that there lies a substantial opportunity to extend the mine life by delineating the additional shallow mineralisation along the recently drilled L1 to TF1 and FB5 to FB6 trends, along with delineating Mineral Resources at FB1 and FB2.  

© 2022 Kalkine Media® | Data Source: BCA |

Flanagan Bore – ESG considerations

BCA is evaluating the environmental and social impacts of the project development, wherein the Company looks to develop a set of policies and guidelines aligned with those impacts. These would focus on risks and benefits related to the project across aspects like energy consumption, waste and pollution management, as well as conservation of natural resources.

BCA has also identified multiple stakeholders who can possibly be impacted by the operation. The Company believes that locally sourcing suppliers and service providers would be an important part of the project. The Company intends to pursue a high level of integrity throughout the business through transparency and collecting and publishing accurate ESG-related records.

Encouraging drill results from Flanagan Bore manganese project

BCA completed 181 reverse circulation drill holes for a total of 7,534m, which formed part of an infill and extensional drilling program at the current Mineral Resource at Flanagan Bore. Thanks to the drilling program, the drill spacing at FB3 and LR1 reduced from 200m spaced lines and 100m centred holes to 100m spaced lines and 100m centred holes.

On the Mineral Resource Estimate upgrade front, BCA believes that the doubling of the drill density would help in upgrading the present Indicated Mineral Resources to the Measured category.

Key intercepts from the RC drilling program conducted at the LR1 and FB3 deposits include the following:

© 2022 Kalkine Media® | Data Source: BCA | Image Source: © Fambros | Megapixl.com

Progress at Oakover and Balfour projects

The Oakover West tenement package witnessed a field mapping and surface geochemistry program, wherein overall, 80 rock chip samples were collected. Assay results are currently pending; however, manganese anomalies associated with hydrothermal and supergene styles of manganese enrichment were identified through the mapping program.

Besides this, BCA also concluded an archaeologic and ethnographic Heritage Survey over tenement E46/1396. This tenement is a host to the Balfour West and East manganese drill targets. Moreover, the company secured approval for a Program of Work, which aims at drilling these targets post the wet season in 2023.

BCA progresses on downstream strategy

Post-September quarter, BCA reported highly promising results from the initial leaching testwork. This testwork was conducted on fines from manganese concentrate composites produced from earlier beneficiation testwork across the LR1 and FB3 deposits. The results achieved up to 91% Mn leach extraction.

The Company also has a strategy to produce high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM), starting with this initial leach and crystallisation testwork. A more detailed Scoping Level leaching, purification, and crystallisation of potential battery-grade manganese sulphate would follow this testwork in the next months.

BCA has initiated the second stage of a hydrometallurgical testwork program with the preparation of suitable manganese oxide concentrates from across LR1 and FB3.

Moving ahead, the Company has planned the following activities to be undertaken during the December 2022 quarter:

© 2022 Kalkine Media® | Data Source: BCA | Image Source: © Wirestock | Megapixl.com 

BCA shares were trading at AU$0.23 midday on 04 November 2022.