A Retention Lease (RL) application has been lodged by Alligator Energy Ltd (ASX:AGE) for a pilot Field Recovery Trial (FRT) later this year at Blackbush deposit of the Samphire Uranium Project in South Australia.
The FRT is planned to trial up to three In-Situ Recovery (ISR) extraction and injection drill hole rings and is expected to extend for 3-4 months beginning in later 2023, subject to receipt of necessary approvals.
An RL application has been lodged with the South Australian Department for Energy and Mining (DEM), which has advised that it has been accepted subject to some detail formatting updates and additional information on baseline descriptions and data on the groundwater characteristics and flow dynamics of aquifers in the application area.
Uranium recovery trial
AGE is planning the trial of in-situ and ion exchange (IX) uranium recovery to verify bench scale test data with a small, containerised pilot process plant to produce uranium into clean eluate solution only, with no final uranium oxide product to be produced at the site.
The company understands the assessment phase for the RL application may take some months. This will involve the DEM and other State agencies and will include an invitation for stakeholders and the public to review the application and make submissions on the proposal.
Precursor to FRT
Alligator Energy CEO Greg Hall said: "Subject to the additional information requested, we are pleased the DEM will commence their assessment of our application for a Retention Lease (RL), which is a precursor to the proposed Field Recovery Trial (FRT) planned for late 2023.
"We anticipate an extensive assessment of the application will occur across Government agencies, which will assess our ability to deliver the trial according to our plans and in a manner which does not have any adverse impacts on the environment."
READ: Alligator Energy lifts Blackbush deposit resource by 23% at Samphire ISR Uranium Project
Sites to be tested
The small-scale short-term FRT would see the company consecutively apply the ISR mining method at up to three separate sites within the Blackbush Deposit ore horizons.
These sites will have one central extraction well (cased drill hole) surrounded by injection wells (4 to 6) sited around 10 metres away. These wells will be 60 to 80 metres deep to access the ore horizons hosted within confined and compacted sand beds.
Pilot process plant
Solution from the ISR wells will be piped to a small pilot process plant, contained within two 40-foot mobile containers within a bunded site area. This will extract uranium from the wellfield solution through an ion exchanges (IX) process into final uranium eluate. No uranium oxide final product will be produced during the FRT.
Additional surveillance groundwater wells will be installed to demonstrate that oxidant dosing of the hypersaline groundwater from which the uranium is extracted, returns to background pH levels through natural neutralisation within a short distance of the FRT extraction and injector wells.
A wider ring of monitor wells will be installed and frequently sampled during and after the FRT to demonstrate no adverse impacts to groundwater outside of this network due to FRT operations.
“Important next step”
"The pilot FRT is an important next step for Samphire as it will confirm many of the previously bench-scale tested and modelled technical, hydrogeological and environmental aspects of the project,” Hall said.
"This will provide the company with a deeper knowledge of the deposit and its amenability to the ISR process, which is the mining method successfully and safely applied at other uranium mines in South Australia since 1998."
The trial will cover around two hectares, being a small portion of the total Samphire Project area, around 20 kilometres south of Whyalla.
Data obtained will feed into a planned pre-feasibility study (PFS) or Samphire in 2024, in conjunction with further resource drilling updates this year.
The pilot plant site will be rehabilitated after required test-work and subject to next steps on progressing the Samphire project.
Purpose of RL
Under South Australian legislation, an RL is required for the purposes of conducting the FRT, which will involve a small pilot trial of the ISR method of uranium extraction using solution mining.
"South Australia is an experienced and globally recognised uranium mining jurisdiction and Alligator is pleased to be working in this supportive framework," Hall said.
"We are highly confident that should our Retention Lease (RL) application be approved, we can deliver the FRT within all regulatory requirements placed upon us."
Scoping study
In recent weeks AGE released a scoping study into the Samphire Project which confirmed the potential for development of the Blackbush deposit as a globally competitive low-cost uranium operation using the in-situ recovery (ISR) process.
The CEO added: "The scoping study provides a high-level economic assessment of what a potential full-scale operation could deliver, however this should not be confused with the current RL application and proposed FRT, which is scheduled for late 2023.
“The RL would only provide the necessary approvals to conduct the proposed small-scale short-term FRT, not a full-scale mine. If the trial is successful, AGE will then undertake a full feasibility study, and any progression to a full mining operation would require further State and Federal Government approvals, along with the securing of project financing, amongst other matters.”
Stakeholder engagement
AGE has been undertaking stakeholder engagement activities since 2020 following its acquisition of the Samphire Project.
"We have greatly appreciated the questions and feedback we have received from stakeholders during our meetings with local leaders, and the broader community during our community presentations and drop-in sessions," Hall said.
"We will continue to provide further opportunities to meet with the AGE team who bring vast experience in uranium mining, the In-Situ Recovery (ISR) mining method and environmental management practices."
To date, AGE has spent in excess of $800,000 with more than 30 local businesses and has recruited four local employees to support development of the project.