Critical minerals explorer Tivan (ASX:TVN) has started planning an expansion of its Speewah Fluorite Project Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) following an independent resource review by SRK Consulting.
The $94.42 million market capitalisation company first flagged that it had signed on SRK for the resource review back in early February, and with the review now complete, the two parties have agreed to progress with a resource update.
This will include exploring opportunities for resource expansion outside of the existing resource envelope.
According to Tivan, SRK’s review found that there were no ‘fatal flaws’ with the prior resource estimate for the Speewah project, but there remains the potential for a ‘small to modest amount of additional mineral resource tonnage’ from depth extensions, peripheral veins, and the Western Zone.
In tandem with the resource update work, Tivan is working with SRK to evaluate the development of an exploration target for the Speewah fluorite project in support of planning resource extension drilling.
SRK says it could develop this exploration target in conjunction with the mineral resource update, but Tivan has yet to make a formal determination regarding the exploration target.
In any case, Tivan has started gearing up for a resource extension drilling program currently scheduled for the September quarter of 2023. The program will target fluorite mineralisation along-strike and at depth below the existing resource, as well as some known fluorite-hosting veins outside of the resource area.
All this comes as Tivan progresses with a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) for the project, which is expected to be completed by June 2024 and will include the planned initial April resource update.
Looking ahead, the company is then planning to publish another resource update following the receipt of assays from the third-quarter drilling before delivering a PFS update before the end of the year.
Tivan Executive Chairman Grant Wilson says the company is confident that it has ‘significant scope’ to expand the Speewah fluorite resources and that its drill program can be designed in a ‘highly capital efficient manner’.
“The results of these works will be integrated into project studies as we proceed, with Tivan, SRK, and Lycopodium working in close collaboration to achieve the optimal project design.
The Speewah Fluorite Project will take shape through conventional stage gates thereafter, keeping Tivan on track for our production target of late 2026.”
Fluorite is used to produce commercial-grade fluorspar products and fluorine, and it subsequently has industrial applications in steel, aluminium, and chemical manufacturing, as well as lithium-ion batteries, solar cells, and semiconductor manufacturing.
According to Tivan, the global fluorspar market is forecast to move into a structural deficit from 2025, with the price of acid-grade fluorspar topping historical highs through 2023.
Images: Tivan
