North of 60 Mining News - The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North

Trilogy Metals Inc. Jan. 10 said metallurgical test work results shows that a high-quality, 30 percent copper concentrate containing no deleterious metals can be produced from the surface mineable in-pit resource at the Bornite project, part of the company's Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects in the Ambler mining district of Northwest Alaska.

The defined in-pit resource encompasses 40.5 million metric tons of indicated resource averaging 1.02 (917 million pounds) copper and 84.1 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 0.95 percent (1.77 billion lb) copper.

In addition to the ability to produce a high-quality copper concentrate, grindability test work shows the mineralized material at Bornite is soft and will have low grinding costs and power consumption.

Future metallurgical test work planned for Bornite include an evaluation of the potential to recover cobalt.

"Cobalt occurs as carrolite and cobaltiferous pyrite," said Trilogy Metals President and CEO Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse. "Electron microprobe and metallurgical work will be conducted during the winter months with the objective of determining if the cobalt can be concentrated into a saleable product. If it is determined that it can, then cobalt will be added to the resource base as a potentially valuable metal which could enhance the value of the possible Bornite ores."

–SHANE LASLEY