RE:Necessary step to make it MORE COMPELLINGEven more compelling ..
Using just the 1-hour leach test extractions and an annual feed rate of 5.475 million tonnes, the project, for example, could perhaps generate 10 to 15 tonnes of scandium, 25 to 40 tonnes of neodymium, and 5 to 10 tonnes of dysprosium as a potential Rare Erath Recovery.
Using a 80 percent recovery for just Scandium over 40 years it might equate to an approximate recovery of 8 tonnes or lets say .2 tonnes per year.. That .2 tonnes equates to 200 kg or 200,000 grams..
. Even though dysprosium oxide sells for US$230.20kg and neodymium oxide sells for US$59kg, and after a lot more refining their metals much higher, we may want to focus on scandium, an extremely valuable rare earth element that is alloyed with aluminum to make lighter yet stronger airplanes for example.
Russia was the first to recognize scandium as a useful metal in the 1950s, and found applications for it in Soviet aircraft and Scandium is expensive, but the market is small.
According to the USGS, supply and consumption of scandium is estimated at just 10 to 15 tonnes per year. The same USGS webpage details scandium prices, which are eye-poppingly high.
A gram (yes a gram) of scandium oxide at 99.9% purity sells for US$8 a gram, while a gram of the same-purity scandium acetate is $44 a gram. The really big numbers come from 99.9% scandium chloride, which sells for $124 a gram, and 99.9% scandium fluoride, which goes for a whopping $277 a gram.
If we can assume that Cypress has revised the flowsheet to include and produce and sell scandium acetate or chloride or fluoride, mining 15 tonnes of scandium oxide, over the life of the mine, fetching $8 a gram could be looked at for the cheapest Scandium product..
Produceing Scandium at 80 percent recovery ( 8 Tonnes ) over 40 years would equate to .2 tonnes or 200 KG or 2000,000 grams per year . Remember 200,000 grams at $8 dolars per gram equates to an additional $1,600,000 per year revenue while we produce the 25,000 tonnes of Lithium Hydroxide..
But if Scandium Acetate is produced the Revenue could look more like 8.8 Million Dollars per year thereby reducing the cost of the 25,000 tones of lithium per year by 352 dollar.s
So our cost to produce at just under $4000 per tonne figure could possibly be reduced to $3,600 per tonne..
So the recovery of saleable rare earths IMHO with the lithium could represent a major reduction in processing costs.
" i still think this is Compelling actually Very Compelling
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