Mineral Processing Circuit

This chapter details the recovery methods and process plant design for the Matupá Gold Project. The selected metallurgical process flow sheet is based on a robust route extensively adopted in the gold industry, featuring a primary crushing circuit followed by a single-stage SAG mill in a closed configuration with hydrocyclones. The process was optimized through third campaign testing, which confirmed that a gravity concentration and leaching process alternative offered higher metallurgical performance compared to direct leaching. The design criteria include a nominal processing rate of 3,562 tpd with specific availability targets for crushing, grinding, and filtration circuits.

This section of the NI 43-101 Technical Report details the recovery methods employed at the Topia Mine metallurgical plant. The process flow begins with coarse ore segregation into six bins, followed by primary crushing using a 15” x 24” jaw crusher and screening via a 6’ x 12’ vibratory screen. Oversize material is secondary crushed before entering a fine ore bin.

This technical report details the recovery methods for the Kitumba Copper Project, focusing on an optimized process flowsheet designed to process 3 Mtpa of ore. The primary objective was to increase copper recovery from 76% to over 90% while managing capital and operating costs. The revised flowsheet incorporates a pressure oxidation (POX) leaching step for the flotation concentrate, replacing the previous atmospheric leaching approach which yielded lower recovery.

The 2016 Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Constellation Project outlines a comprehensive mining and processing plan involving two distinct deposits: the Josemaría open pit in Argentina and the Los Helados underground deposit in Chile. The project aims to process copper and gold-bearing sulphide ore through a centralized processing facility. A key technical decision highlighted in the report is the selection of High Pressure Grinding Roll (HPGR) technology over conventional Semi-Autogenous Grinding (SAG) milling, driven by estimated significant Life of Mine (LOM) operating cost savings.

The Yauricocha Technical Report Pre-Feasibility Study (PEA) outlines the operational status and processing capabilities of the Yauricocha mine operated by Sierra Metals Inc. The facility features a conventional, multi-stage differential flotation plant with two parallel processing circuits designed for polymetallic and oxide mineralized materials. The combined capacity totals 3,600 tonnes per day, with the polymetallic circuit historically operating at 3,000 tpd and the oxide circuit at 600 tpd. Recent improvements have increased daily throughput, though oxide material has not been processed since 2018.

This NI 43-101 Technical Report and Prefeasibility Study outlines the recovery methods for the Marban Project, conducted by Marban Engineering in October 2022. The study selected a conventional leach and carbon-in-pulp (CIP) process route as the most suitable for the deposit and project economics. The proposed flowsheet utilizes standard processes and technologies typical for gold recovery, including crushing, grinding, gravity concentration, intensive leaching, and carbon adsorption.