Image Resources has commenced transporting heavy mineral concentrate (HMC) from its Atlas mineral sands project in Western Australia.
HMC product is being trucked 170km from Atlas to interim storage in Geraldton for it first shipment scheduled for April, setting the stage for a return to revenue and steady-state production.
Since commissioning began in early February, operational performance at Atlas has exceeded expectations, with the processing rate reaching up to 80 per cent of name plate capacity, while operating availability has climbed to 95 per cent, similar to the rapid success seen at Image’s Boonanarring operation in WA.
“Atlas commissioning is progressing at a remarkable rate, and by all measures, it appears we are experiencing a repeat performance of the stellar commissioning results achieved at Boonanarring, where name plate capacity was achieved at the end of the second month of commissioning,” Image Resources managing director and chief executive officer Patrick Mutz said.
“The first hallmark of competent project design and construction is a short commissioning cycle, and Atlas is shaping up to be another example of the positive efforts of the project development, construction, and commissioning teams.”
Early results show that the HMC produced at Atlas is of high quality, containing up to 94 per cent heavy mineral content and 21 per cent zircon.
“The second hallmark is achieving design heavy mineral recovery and product quality early in the commissioning cycle,” Mutz said.
“Early results suggest the Atlas wet concentration plant design and construction were fit for purpose and successfully completed, and commissioning efforts have been effective in achieving high heavy mineral recovery, with HMC quality thus far exceeding expectations.
“We are proud to have worked with Mineral Technologies for the supply of its CT-1 spiral technology for use in the Atlas wet concentration plant rougher circuit.”
Mutz said the innovative spirals have a substantially smaller footprint than conventional spiral designs and can operate with lower water demand.
“The use of CT-1 spirals at Atlas is the first commercial application of this technology and preliminary results have been very positive,” he said.
Subscribe to Australian Mining and receive the latest news on product announcements, industry developments, commodities and more.