Clean TeQ Water Ltd (ASX:CNQ) has exercised an option to purchase accelerated dewatering technology (ATA®) from Soane Labs as part of its targeted expansion into the global mine tailings management industry.
Economically efficient and environmentally sound tailings rehabilitation is a priority for the mining industry, as sustainable metal production, reducing legacy issues and improving social licence to operate are areas of increasing focus.
ATA® represents a step change to both the economics and environmental sustainability of global mine tailings management.
It delivers rapid separation of water and solids from both in-process and in situ tailings; produces stackable dry tailings without the high capital and operating cost of mechanical compression commonly used in the market; and recycling of process water for reuse in operations, including the potential to recover dissolved metals otherwise lost to waste.
"A step change"
Clean TeQ CEO Peter Voigt said, “ATA® represents a step change for the mining industry in economically and sustainably managing current and future mine tailings.
"We have been working with the ATA® technology for over 12 months and are satisfied that it has the potential to change the way mine tailings are processed for mine rehabilitation.
“ATA® complements Clean TeQ’s market-leading metal extraction technologies and enables the company’s strategy to become a leader in the global mine tailings management industry in the rapidly growing global mine tailings management industry.”
Low-cost tailings treatment process
ATA™® technology offers a secure and low-cost mine tailings treatment process by rapidly separating water and solids to produce stackable dry tailings and recycled water.
This technology uses smart chemistry to rapidly agglomerate the solids in ore slurries. The solids dewater under their own gravity, removing the need for high capital and operating cost-pressured filtration used in the industry today.
The resulting materials can be compressed and stacked, with the extracted water being returned to recycle or sent for recovery of dissolved metals. This dramatically reduces water usage.
In underground mining operations, the compact material may also be used for backfilling, with or without cement.
Growing market opportunity
Clean TeQ recognises the enormous market opportunity for mine waste dewatering. It notes that tailings management is a significant environmental and safety challenge for the industry, particularly for mines in tropical climates where natural evaporation rates are low, or where seismic activity increases geotechnical risks.
As environmental bonding requirements increase in response to higher perceived risk in managing tailings storage facilities, the use of the ATA® technology will enhance the mining industry’s environment credentials while lowering operating and mine site rehabilitation costs.
Clean TeQ’s next steps
The company identifies mine tailings management as a major growth opportunity. Clean Teq intends to deploy ATA® in conjunction with its proprietary metal extraction technologies, Clean-iX®.
This forms part of a strategy to provide the mining industry with a holistic mine tailings rehabilitation solution.
That solution will include best-in-class tailings management via future partnerships with both potential customers and experienced tailings management teams.
It will utilise market-leading technologies that provide a step change in the economic and environmental sustainability of mine tailings management. It also provides dry stacked and minimal footprint tailings solutions for current and legacy wet tailings sites, including the ability for underground backfill.
Clean TeQ is planning pilot-scale testing at several sites in the coming months leading to full-scale commercial implementation. The company says that given the demand for advanced tailing management services, it has “well-advanced” plans to establish a new entity to service the market’s needs.
The purchase agreement
Clean TeQ signed an exclusive global technology licence agreement with Soane Labs for the ATA® technology in August 2022. This provided Clean TeQ with an exclusive global licence to exploit the ATA® technology, with an option to purchase the technology at its discretion and at a pre-agreed value within 18 months.
The company has now decided to exercise the option to purchase the ATA® technology via a 100% scrip issue for a total consideration of $3 million. The scrip consideration was based on the volume-weighted average share price over the 10 trading days before the agreement was signed of $0.4179.
Soane Labs will be issued with fully paid ordinary Clean TeQ shares on or about September 27, 2023, which will be placed in voluntary escrow for 12 months.