Zenyatta's ChallengeI welcome rational discussion.
I recently reviewed the PEA and news releases published by Mason Graphite (LLG) in 2013 for their Lac Guéret Graphite Project.
1. As of June 2013, the M + I resource estimate was approximately 8 million tonnes at a grade just above 20%.
2. By my calculations, the PEA assessed the viability of building an 800 TPD operation (flotation circuit only)
3. Annual Graphite production was estimated to be 50,000 TPD.
4. The PEA estimated processing costs of $390 per tonne.
5. The ore grade for the Lac Guéret Graphite is better than 5 times that of the Albany deposit (20% vs 3.9%).
Here's where it gets interesting.
6. I would expect the ZEN mine operational capacity to be at least 8,000 TPD so as to yield 100,00 tonnes of graphite per year.
7. What would be the operational cost of ZEN's flotation circuit?
8. Due to operational efficiencies, I would expect it to be much less than 5 X $390 ($1950). The question is, how much less?
9. As reported, ZEN's best case bench scale flotation result was 90% carbon content.
10. What price would ZEN receivet for graphite having a carbon content of 90% (or less)?
What does this all mean?
11. In all probability, ZEN's Albany deposit is uneconomic if processed only through a flotation circuit.
12. Therefore, the caustic bake purification process will make or break ZEN.
Other graphite deposits are profitable based on the output from the flotation circuit.
The ability to improve the carbon grade through any secondary processing is a bonus.
If analyzed on the basis of a flotation circuit only, the Albany deposit is most likely uneconomic or marginal.
This means that ZEN must make all its profit from the caustic bake process.