Surefire Resources developing new low-cost, eco-friendly mining technology

(NewsDirect)

Surefire Resources NL (ASX:SRN) managing director Paul Burton joins Proactive’s Jonathan Jackson to detail a groundbreaking process for extracting vanadium from magnetite deposits, highlighting a significant advancement in cost efficiency and environmental impact. The company is securing intellectual property for this innovative process through a provisional patent, allowing 18 months for optimisation before full assessment by patent authorities. Traditionally, vanadium extraction involves high-heat kilns operating at 1100 degrees centigrade continuously, which results in substantial power usage, high temperatures and significant emissions. This method incurs immense capital and operating costs, estimated around $100-150 million for kiln construction and maintenance alone. Surefire’s new method circumvents these issues by employing a leaching process with a combination of bleach jets and acids, directly treating the magnetite concentrate derived from mined ore. This approach has demonstrated a potential vanadium recovery rate of up to 97% after 24 hours, far surpassing traditional methods. Additionally, the process also recovers valuable titanium and iron, enhancing overall resource efficiency. The company is currently scaling up this process for commercial application, expecting further results in the coming months and considering a mini pilot plant if results remain positive. The financial implications of reducing capital and operating expenses are significant, potentially transforming the economic feasibility of the Victory Bore Mine deposit and offering a potentially lucrative opportunity for licensing the technology to other producers.