Litchfield Minerals (ASX:LMS) is seeking expressions of interest from commercial partners regarding the Oonagalabi Project in the Northern Territory, after receiving results from an independent mineralogical testwork program.
The company is looking for partners with capability in garnet and industrial mineral processing, alongside product qualification for abrasives or waterjet, blasting and filtration markets.
Partners will also have capabilities in offtake, marketing, and distribution of garnet and industrial minerals.
The partnership scope may include sighter and benchscale testwork, bulk sampling, pilot processing, product specification, and market qualification. Sighter testwork establishes whether the metals can be extracted from the ore easily or not.
This news comes after Litchfield Minerals’ testwork program confirmed the heavy mineral suite (HMS) is dominated by garnet and pyroxenes across the tested size fractions.
Results show samples are dominated by garnet, ranging between 23.1% and 36.1%, as well as pyroxene ranging between 53.9% and 69.3%. The results also showed minor amounts of ilmenite (0.9% to 1.6%), titanite (0.3% and 0.8%), and apatite (0.2% and 0.3%).
Managing Director Matthew Pustahya says confirming this assemblage opens a parallel industrial minerals opportunity, as well as copper and zinc exploration.
“We are moving quickly to identify and engage experienced processors and potential offtake partners to assess product specifications, flowsheet options and potential market entry for a garnet-rich product,” Pustahya says.
Litchfield Minerals is a critical mineral explorer focused on base metals and uranium in the Northern Territory.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Litchfield Minerals
