Mr. Michael Williams reports
VENDETTA REPORTS METALLURGICAL TEST WORK AND DEMONSTRATES HIGH LEAD AND ZINC RECOVERIES AND CONCENTRATE GRADES FROM THE PEGMONT LEAD-ZINC PROJECT
Vendetta Mining Corp. has completed the locked cycle flotation metallurgical testwork at the Pegmont lead-zinc project in Queensland, Australia. These results are from drilling in zones 2, 3 and the connecting Z fold.
Highlights:
Lead concentrate: 89.7-per-cent to 92.7-per-cent Pb Recovery,66.3-per-cent to 72.5-per-cent Pb concentrate grade;Zinc concentrate: 70.4-per-cent to 75.5-per-cent Zn Recovery, 52.3-per-cent to 54.9-per-cent Zn concentrate grade;Transition zone material produced a metallurgical performance equivalent to the sulphide zones.
The results highlight that saleable high-quality concentrates can be produced for both lead and zinc over the zones tested and that the results are very consistent. Transition zone material produced a metallurgical performance equivalent to the sulphide zones.
Metallurgical testing of the Pegmont lead-zinc mineral resource has now included sulphide mineralization from Zones 1, 2, 3 and the Bridge zone plus transition mineralization from Zone 1. This complements metallurgical testing of the sulphide mineralization from the Burke Hinge zone and Zone 5 lens B and C plus transition mineralization from Burke Hinge zone which was conducted at the end of 2016 (see Vendetta news release March 6, 2017, VTT2017 news release No. 1).
Composites were produced from quarter and half NQ and HQ diamond drill core taken from between two and five drill holes per composite. The objective of the current testing was to confirm the grades and recoveries for both lead and zinc concentrates over a broader spread of the Pegmont mineral resource. For Zones 1, 2 and 3, within the open-pit shell, mining dilution was simulated by taking an additional 0.5 metre of core from either side of the mineralized zone being tested. For the Bridge zone the dilution interval was increased to one m on the hangingwall and 0.5 m on the footwall to reflect the impact of the likely underground mining method, although considered a conservative approach. Composite grades are shown in the attached table.
The samples were subjected initially to open-cycle flotation testing to establish test conditions for the locked-cycle flotation testing, which provides a better estimation of the likely plant performance under continuous operation with recycling of intermediate grade streams.
The grade and recovery performance from the locked cycle flotation testing is shown in the table.
Michael Williams, Vendetta's president and chief executive officer, commented: "The metallurgical results presented here continue to demonstrate the value of the open-pit potential in Zone 1, 2 and 3, and of the adjacent Bridge zone underground target. We are particularly pleased with the performance of the Zone 1 transition material, with validation of this near-surface, low-strip material we will look to add additional transition tonnes as part of the 2018 program."
COMPOSITE DETAILS, LOCKED CYCLE RECOVERIES AND CONCENTRATE GRADESAreaBore holes includedComposite head Lead circuitZinc circuitcompositein composite grades (diluted)Pb %Zn %Pb recovery % ConcentrateZn recovery % Concentrate %Sulphide mineralizationPb grade % Zn gradeZone 1PVRD104, PVRD109, PVRD110, PVRD111, PVRD121 7.923.34 91.866.3 75.554.5Zone 2PVRD079, PVRD113, PVRD122,PVRD127, PVRD130 7.283.23 90.867.8 71.354.9Zone 3 PVRD059, PVRD096,PVRD116, PVRD124 7.423.04 89.768.2 73.754.8 Bridge ZonePVRD114, PVRD135,PVRD146, PVRD147 8.802.49 92.768.0 70.452.3 Transition mineralization*Zone 1 PVRD123, PVRD126 8.822.80 91.372.5 75.253.3* Transition mineralization is defined as predominately sulphide lead-zinc mineralization in variably weatheredrocks, with high iron oxide mineralogy.
Impurity analysis for the lead and zinc concentrates are not yet available. The head grades of potential impurity elements are of a similar order as for the composites tested 2016/2017. In the previous round of testing no significant deleterious elements were identified in the concentrates.
The Pegmont sulphide resource is hosted in quartz, garnet, chlorite and magnetite, and the sulphide minerals are galena, sphalerite, and minor pyrite and pyrrhotite. Optical mineralogy has shown that the majority of the galena and sphalerite are liberated at the primary grind size of p80 passing 106 microns but that there is a minor proportion of finely associated galena and sphalerite composites. These composites require regrinding to finer than 20 microns to achieve satisfactory liberation.
The flotation regime chosen for the selective flotation of the lead and zinc concentrates for the Pegmont composites uses industry standard reagents at usage levels that are typical of many lead-zinc flotation operations. The circuit tested is also industry typical with a roughing stage followed by regrind of the rougher concentrates and then two stages of closed cycle cleaning. The regrind used was 15 kilowatt hours per tonne and 10 kWh/t for the lead and zinc circuits respectively.
The four sulphide zone composites were subjected to Bond Ball Mill Work Index testing. The results varied from 18.4 kWh/dry metric tonne to 20.9 kWh/dry metric tonne. This is consistent with the results from Burke Hinge zone and Zone 5 where results ranged from 16.6 kWh/dry metric tonne to 19.4 kWh/dry metric tonne. This would place the ore in the medium-hard to hard range.
The tests were performed by ALS Metallurgy in Burnie Tasmania under the supervision of Vendetta's consulting metallurgist Geoff Richmond.
About the Pegmont lead-zinc project
Pegmont is a stratiform, Broken Hill-type deposit that outcrops with an overall shallow dip to the southeast and is hosted in a magnetite-rich banded iron formation within high-grade metamorphic rocks. The project consists of three granted mining leases and one exploration permit that cover an area of approximately 8,290 hectares.
Pegmont is situated in the Mount Isa and McArthur mineral province, which hosts one of the world's richest endowments of lead-zinc-silver mineralization, including several world-class lead-zinc-silver mines.
Pegmont is located 25 kilometres west of South 32's Cannington silver-lead-zinc operation, one of the world's largest producers of lead and silver, and 28 kilometres north of Chinova Resources' Osborne copper-gold operations.
Pegmont is proximal to existing infrastructure, including public roads, mine haul roads, rail and a natural gas pipeline for power generation.
In June, 2017, Vendetta updated the mineral resource estimate for Pegmont; for full details, please see Vendetta's news release dated June 27, 2017.
The company expects to complete an updated National Instrument 43-101 technical report in Q1 2018.
About Vendetta Mining Corp.
Vendetta Mining is a Canadian junior exploration company engaged in acquiring, exploring and developing mineral properties with an emphasis on lead and zinc. It is currently focused on advanced-stage exploration projects in Australia, the first of which is the Pegmont lead-zinc project.
Qualified person
Peter Voulgaris, MAusIMM, MAIG, a director of Vendetta, is a non-independent qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Voulgaris has reviewed the technical content of this press release, and consents to the information provided in the form and context in which it appears.
Geoff Richmond FAusIMM, a consulting metallurgist to Vendetta, is a qualified person as defined by NI 43-101. Mr Richmond has reviewed the metallurgical technical content of this press release, and consents to the information provided in the form and context in which it appears.
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