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Centaurus Metals Ltd advised that it has secured an exclusive option over a strategically located manganese project in the State of Minas Gerais, south-eastern Brazil, positioning it to further expand its regional manganese exploration portfolio and develop a small-scale manganese project that would complement the Company’s emerging iron ore operations.
The Ribeirão Manganese Project The Company has secured an option to acquire the Ribeirão Manganese Project, located 120 kilometres from Gerdau’s 4.5mtpa Açominas Steel Facility, 200 kilometres from the open access export port of Sepetiba and 25 kilometres from the open access MRS railway line. The Project – which comprises three tenements (two with Final Reports approved and one Exploration Lease) covering an area of approximately 7 km2 and which was mined artisanally several decades ago from an historic open pit – has an Exploration Target of 1 to 2 million tonnes grading 25-33% Mn. Manganese, which is in high demand from the local Brazilian steel mills, is a logical and high margin addition to the Centaurus project portfolio in south-eastern Brazil. As a frequently used additive (with few substitutes) in making certain steels, manganese complements Centaurus’ emerging domestic and export iron ore business. The mineralisation, evident in the old pit area at Ribeirão, is a manganese oxide with supergenic enrichment. Early stage crushing and screening indicates that a saleable product can be produced at a size fraction greater than 10mm. Limited surface rock chip sampling has to date shown that a product grading up to 35% Mn can be produced via simple crushing and screening at the >10mm size fraction. Option Agreement Under the terms of the Option Agreement, Centaurus will pay US$60,000 for an exclusive 6-month option over the Project, during which time exploration activities will be undertaken to assess the Exploration Target and its ability to host an economic manganese project for the nearby domestic steel industry. Centaurus can exercise the option any time during the 6-month period through the payment of an up-front purchase amount and a future Net Smelter Royalty on all manganese production over a specified final product tonnage threshold. Centaurus has already undertaken a number of field visits for due diligence purposes which have enabled the Company to map and sample the outcropping manganese mineralisation. The manganese has been mapped in the old pit area over a strike length of some 200 metres and the mineralisation appears to be approximately 20 metres in width. Assay results from the initial rock chip sampling indicate that the manganese grades between 25% and 33% Mn, with low phosphorus levels. Only small amounts of iron, between 4% and 7% Fe, were found in the samples collected. The mineralised zone appears to extend for more than 1 kilometre outside of the old pit but the widths and grade of mineralisation need to be tested in this area. Commentary Commenting on the acquisition, Centaurus’ Managing Director, Mr Darren Gordon, said: "Securing the strategically located Ribeirão Manganese Project, provides the opportunity to build our manganese portfolio in an area that will allow us to supply the domestic steel industry in Brazil." "With manganese being such a high value commodity, we have the opportunity to supply a customer base in Brazil that simply can’t source enough high quality product and in turn generate healthy returns from a relatively small project base", he added. |
