Viking Mines (ASX:VKA) has returned a ‘premium, saleable’ tungsten trioxide concentrate at its Linka Project in Nevada.
Following metallurgical testwork, the company reports a combined gravity-plus-flotation tungsten trioxide concentrate grading of 62.5% with a recovery of 59.8% from a 1.2% tungsten trioxide feed grade.
The company describes this as a “step-change improvement” from the previous 56.4% tungsten trioxide @ 46% recovery, as reported by Mining.com.au in late March.
Validation testwork was conducted on a 10kg sample, in comparison to the previously used 2kg sample, which materially de-risks the scale-up of the gravity circuit.
CEO Julian Woodcock describes the results as “yet another significant step forward” for the company’s Linka Project.
“Just as importantly, continued refinement of the gravity stage has pushed our standalone gravity concentrate to 66.6% tungsten trioxide,” Woodcock says.
“With the result attained from a larger 10kg sample, this repeatability at scale gives us confidence in the flowsheet we are developing.
Woodcock adds that the flowsheet remains deliberately simple, using “proven technologies”.
“We avoid the chemical complexity and high capital intensity that holds back many critical minerals projects. This keeps Linka on a fast-track development path in a tier-one US jurisdiction.
“These results feed directly into the conceptual processing study underway with Mineral Technologies as we de-risk the processing pathway ahead of our maiden drilling program.”
Base Met Labs and Independent Metallurgical Operations are both continuing to optimise operating conditions to maximise recovery and grade at Linka.
With the metallurgical pathway now de-risked, Viking is targeting maiden drilling at Linka in the June 2026 quarter.
Viking Mines is a diversified explorer and developer, focused on tungsten, gold, and vanadium projects.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Images: Viking Mines
