Surefire Resources is fast-tracking its Perenjori magnetite iron ore project in WA, with the aspiring producer tabling a massive resource for the deposit that now weighs in at 192 million tonnes grading over 36 per cent iron that the company says can be beneficiated up to a stellar 70 per cent iron concentrate.
Importantly, the company says recent test work shows only low levels of impurities across the ore body.
With the iron ore market running hot and the sought-after industrial metal trading at over US$160 per tonne, the company has dusted off the old reports and data relating to Perenjori in WA’s Mid West. Geological consulting group, HGS Australia has conducted a detailed review of the project and concluded that a previous resource estimate compiled by CSA Global in 2013 had stood the test of time and remained acceptable under the JORC standards.
HGS’ review also extended to the prospectivity of the project and concluded that through extensional exploration, the resource at Perenjori could be rapidly expanded to more than 500 million tonnes, which might prove a game changer for Surefire.
According to the company, the Perenjori feed is amenable to a coarse grind which is something of a rarity for magnetite deposits, with the intermediate product then subjected to gravity and magnetic separation in order to produce a premium concentrate. The high-grade concentrate grades up to 69.66 per cent iron and shows low levels of silica, alumina and sulphur.
The company’s test work also indicates the Perenjori ores exhibit favourable recoveries, with 84 to 86 per cent of the available iron in the feedstock reporting to the concentrate.
Surefire’s consultants have also identified a raft of targets surrounding the established iron ore deposit at Perenjori which have the potential to add substantially to the existing resource inventory. They include the extensions to the magnetite-bearing banded iron formations and potential hematitic, direct shipping ores that may be present as proximal detrital and supergene deposits.
However, one of the critical drawcards that Surefire is set to play is the project’s access to infrastructure. Perenjori is located 200 kilometres to the south-east of the coastal centre of Geraldton and is connected to the port via both road and rail. The project also lies 17km south of the mothballed Koolanooka iron ore mining operations and just 16km north-east of the Bowgada Siding on the Mullewa rail line, providing a ready-made ‘project to port’ transport solution.
The project also boasts ready access to both power and water, providing the company with a welcome leg up as it eyes a move towards its development.
Surefire is now looking to expedite its development program at Perenjori and is planning to shift into feasibility in the coming months. The company’s work program will likely include extensional and infill drilling, upgraded metallurgical test work and preliminary plant design and engineering.
With the iron ore price continuing to push record highs and a ready-made resource and infrastructure solution at Perenjori, Surefire looks ready to ride the iron ore train all the way to port and push its product into the increasingly hungry Asian metal markets.
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