Tando Resources firms up SPD vanadium project with ‘outstanding’ assay results

Tando Resources (ASX: TNO) has released an encouraging set of high-grade assay results at its SPD vanadium project in South Africa, yielding magnetic concentrate above 2%.

Concentrate was generated from mineralised drill samples by davis tube, which separates magnetic material from non-magnetic material.

Some of the highlights include 7m at 2.17% vanadium pentoxide from 3m, 35m at 2.11% vanadium pentoxide from 47m, and 24m at 2.16% vanadium pentoxide from surface, including 12m at 2.15% vanadium pentoxide and 2m at 2.20% vanadium pentoxide from 22m.

Tando also highlighted the encouraging mass recovery achieved across mineralised intervals, with recovery increasing to above 40% in higher grade zones.

Mass recovery is important when assessing a vanadium projects feasibility. The higher the mass recovery, the less material is required to be processed to achieve a production target and the less waste needs to be disposed of or stored.

Tando managing director Bill Oliver said the company’s strategy to establish SPD as a substantial, robust vanadium project was advancing rapidly.

“These davis tube results confirm the potential to generate a high-grade vanadium product via simple magnetic separation,” he said.

Last month, the company unveiled an impressive maiden JORC resource for SPD, leading Tando to describe the project as a potential tier one asset.

The resource totals 588 million tonnes grading 0.78% vanadium pentoxide. The resource includes a high-grade zone of 87Mt at 1.07% vanadium pentoxide, which is the focus of the current engineering and metallurgical studies

Scoping study underway

Work is already underway on various studies which will feed into a scoping study for the project. The current work includes metallurgical testing and pit optimisation studies.

The company plans to release results of this this work later in the quarter, along with drill results from the phase two drill program.

In addition, samples from the diamond core holes in the drilling program are being processed, with the results from these samples set to be used to update the projects resource estimate later in the current quarter.

Tando is confident the amended resource should contain a high proportion of material in the indicated category if assay results for the second round of drilling are consistent with adjacent holes.

In addition, the increased detail from the infill drilling will enable the higher-grade massive magnetite layers to be better delineated, increasing the potential for selective mining to meet offtake specifications.

Location, location, location

The SPD project is aided by its proximity to critical infrastructure, with rail links, sealed roads and high voltage power lines and sub stations operating in the area.

It also has the appeal of nearology, given the asset is located in one of the top three highest vanadium producing regions globally.

The project sits within a similar geological setting to the mining operations of Glencore’s Rhovan mine and Buhshveld Minerals’ Vametco mine in the Gauteng and Limpopo provinces of South Africa.

Both the Rhovan and Vametco operations include refining to generate products used in the global steel making industry and aim to develop downstream processing to produce materials used in the battery market.

Tando is seeking to capitalise on vanadium’s growth, which is being driven by China’s new steel rebar standards.