Panton revisited Mark Fraser, 1 September 2011 A PLATINUM group metal-strong polymetallic play in Western Australia?s Kimberley is currently being revisited after being deprioritised by its owner some seven years ago.
Platinum Australia, which over the past half decade has been busy developing its Smokey Hill, Kalplats and Rooderand PGM projects in South Africa, recently indicted it was reviewing the due diligence carried out on Panton, a 14 million tonne deposit grading 5.2% PGM (platinum, palladium and gold), 0.27% nickel and 0.08% copper.
About 50km north of Halls Creek, Panton was the company?s major asset when it listed on the ASX in 2000. After some intense due diligence ? including the development of an appropriate processing circuit - it more or less dropped from sight following the completion of a bankable feasibility study during 2003-04.
Unlike PGM deposits in South Africa, the WA deposit does not contain UG2 or Merensky Reef-style mineralisation. Rather, the PGMs are hosted within stratiform chromitite layers that get thicker, but with a weakening grade, as they go deeper.
During this week?s Africa Downunder Conference in Western Australia, Platinum Australia managing director John Lewins said Panton was being looked at again in light of the fact metal prices had more or less increased between 250-500% since the completion of the BFS. A technical and commercial review was now due by the end of the September quarter, with initial work indicating the planned openpit could be increased in size by up to 50% (1.9mt of ore), thus providing a three-year life ahead of a mooted underground operation.
The project, Lewins said, had the potential to yield 90,000 ounces of PGM per annum based on a throughput of 600,000tpa.
In addition, the Panton process could achieve 75-80% recoveries and produce a high grade concentrate of about 2000 grams per tonne of PGM as well as 50% nickel and copper.
?The important part about that is it can by-pass the smelter, it has higher payability and it opens up bigger markets for you,? Lewins said. ?Our initial review suggests that capex and opex are up in US dollar terms by about 100%, but we?ve got a 300% increase in our revenues.
?So we think it is starting to look attractive again.?
In terms of the market, Lewins pointed out that primary supply for platinum and palladium in 2010 was the same as it had been in 2001, while demand had been fuelled by the continued use of autocatalysts, jewellery sales as well as Chinese consumption.
?Despite the fact that China only produces about 100,000oz of PGMs a year, it still consumes over 3 million oz,? he said.
PLA Price at posting:
22.5¢ Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Not Held
