Alligator Energy (ASX:AGE) has commenced uranium extraction at its Samphire Uranium Project, 20km southwest of Whyalla in South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula region.
The process involves introducing reagents that form lixiviant to extract uranium-bearing pregnant liquor solution (PLS) from the first trial wellfield.
The first test pattern pre-conditioning is complete and Alligator found initial uranium concentrations in the PLS flowing into the plant.
The field recovery trial is planned to operate for four months and consistently generate an operational and technical data stream. Alligator says that this should provide critical insights into uranium recovery performance, operating parameters, and wellfield behaviour. The company’s Bankable Feasibility Study is underway.
The company is upgrading the Samphire mineral resource estimate to incorporate the Plumbush satellite prospect and start aggressive drilling programs at both Samphire and the Big Lake Project in the Festival State’s Cooper Basin.
“This is another milestone for the Samphire project and reflects the consistent progress the team has made in systematically advancing and de-risking the project,” Alligator CEO Andrea Marsland-Smith says.
“The start of uranium extraction is an exciting step towards further confidence in the project’s development pathway, particularly when the deposit is responding well to the in-situ recovery process in these early stages of the trial.”
Alligator Mining is a uranium and energy metals project development and exploration group with assets mostly in South Australia.
Write to Richard Szabo at Mining.com.au
Images: Alligator Mining
