Namibia Critical Metals will move the Lofdal Heavy Rare Earth Project from bench-scale to pilot-scale following the completed flotation pilot plant test work.
The Lofdal Heavy Rare Earth Project, in the Kunene Region, Namibia, hosts the highly sought-after heavy rare earth metals dysprosium and terbium.
The TSX-listed company conducted the tests from October to December 2023 on a 5-ton representative bulk sample from the Lofdal Area 4 starter pit at SGS Lakefield.
Namibia Critical Metals president Darrin Campbell said the test work results mark a significant milestone in the journey toward unlocking Lofdal’s immense deposit potential.
According to Campbell, the highly positive results are groundbreaking in scaling the Lofdal project from bench to pilot scale.
Namibia Critical Metals owns a 95% interest in the Lofdal project, with the remaining 5% held for the benefit of historically disadvantaged Namibians.
The Lofdal project is fully permitted with a 25-year mining license and is under a joint venture agreement with the Japan Organisation for Metals and Energy Security.
An updated preliminary economic assessment for Lofdal 2B-4, filed on November 14, 2022, shows a post-tax NPV of US$391 million and an annual IRR of 28% with a capital expenditure of US$207 million.
The project is projected to generate a life of my nominal cash flow of US$ 698 million post-tax over a 16-year mine life.
The company also owns the Erongo Gold Project and the Grootfontein Base Metal and Gold Project, which has the potential for magmatic copper-nickel mineralisation.
