Xanadu Mines (ASX:XAM) has posted peak copper extraction rates of 93% following recent column leaching tests completed on the mineralised oxide portion of the Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) at its Kharmagtai Project in Mongolia.
Concurrently, the $73.78 million market capitalisation company returned gold extraction rates of 46%.
Extraction occurred over 8-week leach duration, using sample head grade of 0.29% copper and 0.42 grams per tonne gold at a coarse 6mm particle size.
The company says the results also demonstrate material progress towards one of the multiple uplift scenarios defined in the Kharmagtai Scoping Study, with value add likely; reducing mining strip and generating earlier operating cashflows for the Kharmagtai Prefeasibility Study (PFS), in addition to sulphide flotation processing of the main mineralised orebody.
Upscaled column leach tests, as well as heap leach engineering design work, are in progress and are expected to be extended for a further 4 weeks, out to a total 12-week period.
According to Xanadu, results to date indicate that leaching is accelerated at a finer crush size, and gold and copper extraction are tracking better than expected.
Xanadu Mines is an explorer operating in Mongolia which offers exposure to ‘globally significant’, ‘large-scale’ copper-gold discoveries, and low-cost inventory growth.
The company maintains a portfolio of exploration projects and remains one of the few junior explorers on the ASX or TSX which jointly control a ‘globally significant’ copper-gold deposit in its flagship Kharmagtai project.
Xanadu is the operator of a 50:50 joint venture with Zijin Mining Group in Khuiten Metals, which controls 76.5% of the project.
Images: Xanadu
