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LONDON (Alliance News) - Bushveld Minerals Ltd on Monday said it has received encouraging results from its Groenfontein tin project in South Africa and provided an update on the expected completion of its acquisition of Strategic Minerals Corp.
Bushveld said pilot-scale metallurgical test work conducted at the project achieved commercial-scale concentrate grades of 74.59% tin dioxide.
Plant design work for the project is underway and the final costing to determine the capital and operating expenditure requirements for the project is also progressing, Bushveld said.
"The encouraging metallurgical results achieved support our view that high-grade cassiterite concentrates can be produced from the Groenfontein Deposit with relatively good recoveries," said Fortune Mojapelo, Bushveld's chief executive.
Elsewhere, Bushveld said it now expects to complete the acquisition of Strategic Minerals Corp from London-listed Russian miner and steel producer Evraz PLC on or before July 15.
Bushveld is buying Strategic Minerals with private investor Yellow Dragon through special purpose vehicle Bushveld Vametco Ltd from Evraz PLC, for a total of up to USD17.2 million. Strategic Minerals owns the Vametco vanadium mine and plant in South Africa.
Shares in Bushveld were down 3.2% to 1.96 pence Monday.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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