Update –3 October 2023
ATR is actively progressing its planned Rehabilitation and Tailings Reprocessing Project on the Ardlethan Tin Mine site.
We have made good progress with pilot plant operations at the Ardlethan Tin Mine and we are now on the cusp of finalizing commissioning of the existing plant and commencing commercial production, albeit we still have further improvements to the process circuit to be trialled after production operations formally commence. These initiatives are aimed at maximising the amount of tin we can recover from the tailings, but even without these enhancements we expect the operation to be sufficiently efficient for the operation to be financially viable when we commence commercial operations, hopefully in November 2023.
We have submitted all the environmental plans and other data to the various government authorities as required by Council’s Development Approval Conditions of Consent for a 1.5 million tonne per annum operation. We expect to have all the approvals formally signed off in the next few days so that there are no impediments to production operations commencing in August as planned.
Environmental Protection Licence Number 21797 was granted to us on 6 July 2023.
The price of tin has fluctuated between about US$30,000 and US$20,000 per tonne over the past two years but appears to have settled at around US$26,000 per tonne (approx. AU$40,000 per tonne at the current currency exchange rate). This is consistent with ATR’s financial projections for a viable operation.
Commencing with shipping one 22 tonne container load of concentrate (20 tonnes dry weight ,containing just over 50% tin) to market overseas each month, ATR’s intention is to progressively ramp up production as we become increasingly satisfied that the production process circuit is as efficient and reliable as we can reasonably achieve and is operating on a financially viable basis. We will do this in a step-by-step manner as potential process improvements are tested and implemented, by increasing hours worked each week and by adding additional production capacity to the plant process circuit.
Background
The Ardlethan Tin Mine is located approximately 500 km southwest of Sydney, NSW 5 km NW of Ardlethan township. It covers about 400 hectares on land wholly owned by EOE (No 75) Pty Ltd (EOE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Australian Tin Resources Pty Ltd (ATR).
Excellent road and rail access is available within close proximity to the site. Additionally an approx.50km pipeline from the Murrumbidgie River at Grong Grong to site is now decommissioned, but subject to approval could potentially be reinstated.
ATR acquired EOE in July 2007 with the intention of re-opening the mine site to process approximately 9.0 million tonnes of tin tailings that remained after the previous mining activities.
Mining at Ardlethan commenced in 1912. At first it was on a small scale, but between 1965 and 1986 Aberfoyle Resources NL mined around 30 million tonnes of granite, initially from open cut operations and later from underground workings.
Of the approx 30 million tonnes mined, Aberfoyle processed about 9.0m tonnes of ore assaying 0.46% tin. The remaining 21 million tonnes (approx) had a tin content below Aberfoyle’s cut-off grade of 0.20% tin and were stockpiled in overburden waste dumps which surround the open cuts. In 2020 ATR carried out very successful tests offsite to trial a Tomra Ore Sorter on a bulk sample of our waste rock. The results were impressive with high upgrade rates being achieved and pointed to the feasibility of viably processing the waste rock as a future option.
Mining operations ceased in 1986 due to the collapse of tin prices.
Advances in processing methods and increased current tin prices, created the catalyst for ATR to consider recommencing mining operations on site, initially by reprocessing the tailings and possibly also waste material stockpiled at the mine site to produce tin concentrate.
Additionally, the underground hard rock resource offers an attractive future opportunity in the longer term.
|
Total Resources
|
Tonnes
(million)
|
%Sn
|
Contained Tin
(tonnes)
|
|
Tailings *
|
10.7
|
0.20%
|
21,600
|
|
Waste Material *
|
21.3
|
0.09%
|
20,200
|
|
Hard Rock Underground **
|
5.5
|
0.45%
|
24,700
|
|
TOTAL
|
37.5
|
|
66,500
|
* Source: Reynard Australia Pty Ltd Report, October 2011
** Source: Ardlethan Information Brochure, Molina & Doran, May 1989
Tailings Reprocessing
Retreatment of the tailings from previous mining operations was the main driver for Australian Tin Resources deciding to acquire the Ardlethan tin mine.
ATR now has DA approval to construct a 150 tonne per hour plant on site to operate 24 hours/day, 7 days/week.
However before moving to production, ATR is firstly carryng out small scale pilot plant processing operations on site to prove up the processing technology. Then if the pilot plant results are successful, and following completion and approval of all DA consent conditions, ATR plans to upsize the processing plant to ~60 tonnes per hour capacity and commence 24/7 production .
The plant can be progressively upsized to it’s approved 150 tonnes per hour capacity over time.
|
Tailings
JORC Resource
|
Inferred Resources
|
Indicated Resources
|
Contained Tin (tonnes)
|
|
Tonnes
millions
|
% Tin
|
Tonnes
millions
|
% Tin
|
|
Main Tailings Dam
Pre 1964
Post 1964
|
1.94
|
0.30%
|
4.87
|
0.19%
|
5,800
9,000
|
|
Spring Valley Tailings Dam
Pre 1981
Post 1981
|
2.67
0.48
|
0.17%
0.14%
|
|
|
4,500
700
|
|
White Crystal Pit Tailings
|
0.76
|
0.15%
|
|
|
1,100
|
|
Sulphide Tailings Dam
|
0.03
|
1.53%
|
|
|
500
|
|
TOTAL TAILINGS
|
5.86
|
0.21%
|
4.87
|
0.19%
|
21,600
|
Source: Reynard Australia Pty Ltd Report, October 2011
Waste Stockpiles
The Ardlethan mine contains approximately 21.3 million tonnes of granite previously mined by Aberfoyle and now stored in waste dumps circling the open cuts. Processing the stockpiled waste material represents a potential option and is a comparatively low capital and operating costs option. Waste material boulders typically range in size from approx 30cm to 100cms in diameter and the waste dumps are readily accessible from existing mine haul roads.
ATR has obtained JORC certification of the waste material resources stockpiled at the mine site as summarized in the table below.
In 2020 ATR carried out very successful tests offsite to trial a Tomra Ore Sorter on a bulk sample of our waste rock. The results were impressive with high upgrade rates being achieved and pointed to the feasibility of viably processing the waste rock as a future option.
|
Waste Stockpile
JORC Resource
|
Inferred Resources
|
Indicated Resources
|
Contained Tin
(tonnes)
|
|
Tonnes
millions
|
% Tin
|
Tonnes
millions
|
% Tin
|
|
Main Waste Dump
Pre 1964
Post 1964
|
0.33
18.72
|
0.10%
0.09%
|
|
|
300
17,400
|
|
White Crystal
|
2.20
|
0.11%
|
|
|
2,500
|
|
TOTAL WASTE
|
21.25
|
0.09%
|
|
|
20,200
|
Source: Reynard Australia Pty Ltd Report, October 2011
Hard Rock Mining of Underground Resource
The table below summarises the hard rock mineral resources at the time of mine closure in August 1986. These resources consist of broken ore in stopes, remnants, pillars and resources inferred from drilling. Access would be via a decline just north of the main Ardwest / Wild Cherry Open Cut.
There is further potential deeper underground on the mine site and in surrounding environs. There are also some small deposits of known high grade ore at or near the surface.
|
Hard Rock Underground Resource
|
Inferred Resources
|
Indicated Resources
|
Contained Tin (tonnes)
|
|
Tonnes
millions
|
% Tin
|
Tonnes
millions
|
% Tin
|
|
Measured
|
|
|
.05
|
0.51%
|
275
|
|
Indicated
|
|
|
.80
|
0.50%
|
3,980
|
|
Inferred
|
0.47
|
0.36%
|
|
|
1,670
|
|
Potential
- Black Reef /Champion
- Godfrey
- Keogh East
|
0.28
3.80
0.10
|
0.83%
0.42%
0.50%
|
|
|
2,325
15,950
500
|
|
TOTAL HARD ROCK
|
4.64
|
0.44%
|
0.85
|
0.50%
|
24,700
|
Source - Ardlethan Information Brochure, Molina & Doran, May 1989.
oOo
