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Table 1: Production Outcomes and Assumptions – Base Case

Mineral Resource Estimate Detail

SGS was commissioned by Harena to review and restate the 2023 MRE in accordance with the guidelines of the JORC 2012 Code. The restated MRE issued by SGS (Camus, 2023) summarised below has an Effective Date of 1 November 2023:

The relevance of this resource supports many important project enablers. The fact it is an ionic clay resource leads to low capital and low operating cost metrics. Simple, cheap salt washing is all that is required to liberate the ionised adsorption bond of rare earth minerals from the gangue material they are held with. 

Well-structured ionic clay deposits are rare and the deposit at the Ampasindava Project is as good as any from a global perspective. 

Table 2.  Mineral Resource Estimate for Ampasindava Project Deposit at Cut-Off of 500 ppm TREO 

Important note:

The Company advises that the PFS is based on the JORC 2012 Mineral Resource Estimate, however, a Mineral Reserve has not yet been estimated. There is no certainty that further economic assessment will result in the eventual conversion of Mineral Resources to Ore Reserves or that the production target itself, assumptions used in the Study and resulting economic outcomes will be realised. The stated production target is based on the Company’s current expectations of future results or events and should not be solely relied upon by investors when making investment decisions. Further evaluation work and appropriate studies are required to establish sufficient confidence that this target will be met. Engineering studies and estimates including peer works support capital and operating cost estimates and are based on standard extraction and processing techniques. Non‐binding discussions are underway with interested parties for offtake of planned production. Discussions with third party infrastructure providers are underway. Extensive environmental baseline studies have been completed and no social, environmental, legal or regulatory impediments to development have been identified. The Pre-Feasibility Study is based on 100% of Measured and Indicated Resource. A Mineral Reserve has not been estimated at this time.

Project Design and Philosophy 

The Ampasindava Project is a large-scale, long-life, REE Project in north eastern Madagascar. REE will be extracted from a 20 km long near surface ionic adsorption clay ore-body spanning the peninsular of Ampasindava in the province of Antsiranana in northern Madagascar. According to the PFS, commencing at 2.5 million tonnes treated per annum, by year 5, the Project will be processing 5 million tonnes of ionic adsorption clay ore through two process plant modules producing an estimated 4,000 tonnes of TREO despatched as 6,700 tonnes of mixed rare earth carbonate concentrate (MREC) at 60% per annum with an annual value of approximately US$250 million.

Some 88 million dry tonnes of ionic clay ore are expected to be processed, extracted and returned to the mine cavities over the 20+ year Project life. The Project is expected to deliver estimated gross royalty payments to Madagascar of US$220 million plus corporate tax contributions of US$320 million over its life based upon the existing JORC Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) as of November 2023. 

The proposed mining and processing sequence which is labelled “A rapid remediation, zero harm mining system”, returns neutral and non-toxic clays back to the mining cavity within a very short timeframe, allowing for land re-use or natural rehabilitation to occur. The system involves:

The full mining, processing and rehabilitation cycle is expected to be about 3 months and the moving mining footprint will be similar to the area disturbed by 3 months of mining which will be between 10 and 15 hectares. 

The Project will preferentially employ local people with the appropriate skills and qualifications over the life of the Project and expects that almost all the 400-person workforce will be Malagasy by Year 5. Adult skills training and a focus on education support will develop local capacity and facilitate employment of local people including women into technical and managerial roles with the Project. 

A comprehensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) of the Project is being undertaken in accordance with Office of Natural Environment (ONE) requirements and following IFC standard best practices. The social program and procurement strategy is based on the mantra – Local First, Regional Second and National and International Third. The intention is to create sources of income and wealth centres for local, impoverished Malagasy and secure a sense of local ownership of the Project. This inspires commitment, protection and self-interest to protect and uplift the project.

Process Recovery Methods

Ionic adsorption clay deposits are known for their relatively simple low capital processing arrangements. REE adsorbed onto clays are simply desorbed using an ion-exchange-based elution process with eluants such as sodium chloride or ammonium sulphate. 

Ore is agglomerated at the ROM pad before being stacked in heaps of 80m width and 240m length on a sealed impervious layered heap foundation. There will be 26 of these heaps for a 5 Mtpa production cycle. 

Heaps are 3m high but can sometimes be built higher to increase production. Drip irrigation is used to minimize evaporation, provide more uniform distribution of the leach solution, and avoid damaging the exposed mineral. 

The solution then percolates through the heap and desorbs both the target and other minerals. This process, called the “leach cycle,” generally takes from less than one month for simple oxide ores. The leach solution containing the dissolved rare earths is then collected, treated in a simple process plant to recover the mixed rare earth as a carbonate product. The mother liquor, now rich in ammonium sulfate is recycled to the heap after reagent levels are adjusted. Ultimate recovery of the target mineral can range up to 80% 

Heap leaching does not produce large tailings dams and the amount of overall environmental impact caused by heap leaching is often lower than more traditional techniques and is therefore more environmentally friendly. It also requires less energy consumption to use this method, which many consider to be an environmental alternative.

The indicative and conceptual process flow sheet is indicated below in Figure 1. 

Organisational Planning

The Ampasindava Project organisational chart is listed below in Figure 2. The organisational chart allocates operational responsibility amongst the functional contractors and service providers.

Each functional contractor and service provider will include their required personnel structures and staff numbers in the tender procurement process. This will allow the Company to scale the camp and personnel transport facilities accordingly.  

The fully-outsourced procurement model is functionally attractive for the construction and operation of remote mining operations. The specialist engineering and operations are left to functional experts and owner’s mine management can oversee and focus on the core mineral beneficiation function. 

It is expected that at least 50% of the mine personnel will live in private accommodation in villages nearby.

Capital and Operating Costs

The capital cost estimate is broken down into the main areas of infrastructure, camp and offices, mining and processing plant and associated project costs, as shown in Table 3. The mining capital cost estimate was developed by Harena with input from contract mining service providers elsewhere in Africa and the general and plant capital cost estimate was developed by first order assessments from other projects located globally. 

The capital estimate is subject to a study upgrade where the PFS will be enhanced to definitive level and the capital estimates will be supported by design criteria and a higher level of supplier enquiries and quotes. 

Table 3.  Ampasindava Project summary of CAPEX breakdown (in US$M).

The operating cost estimates were developed in loose collaboration with mining contractors from other African projects, engineering consultants in Australia and other local cost indexes.

The operating costs were prepared using the WBS and some equipment lists generated for the project. These estimates were prepared in US$. 

Table 4. A summary of the operating costs estimate broken down into respective components. 

1.14 Manning and Personnel

It is intended to source skilled and semi-skilled staff under the following guiding principles:

The Paterson system of job ranking will be used and there will be no discrimination on the basis of gender, age, race or disability. Thus, all appointments will be merit based.

Approximately only 8 Expatriate Staff will be forecast to work at the operation during the initial years. These will be specialist Process and Engineering skills that will assist in reaching the demanding production rate of 5 million tonnes processed per annum.

On the job training and skills development of Malagasy professionals will allow these expatriate employees to retreat. Most staff will be encouraged to live in nearby towns and establish localised homes and encourage a family working environment. 

Table 5. Operational Manning Estimate 

Please refer to the PFS announcement available on Harena’s website for an Employment Organigram for the Ampasindava Project Rare Earth Mine.

Next Steps – Proof of Concept Plant 

The critical next step for all leach operations is the test and proof that the design process operates under ambient conditions in the field adjacent to the mineral source. Harena plans to permit and construct a Proof of Concept (PoC) plant at the mine processing site. This exercise will take approximately 9 months and will operate for as long is necessary to provide de-risked operating confirmation of the process and leach lixiviant requirements, the environmental outcomes and the economic and technical viability of the planned operation.

Following successful deployment of the PoC, the Company will move to further design and a Decision to Mine which would launch construction and project activities proper.

The image below in Figure 3 is a representative Project in Chile but is a good representation of a Proof of Concept heap leach and recovery mine plant. It appears that about 5,000 to 6,000 tonnes was heap leached here. 

Project planning for the PoC project includes the following steps: 

The Company wishes to fast-track progress on the Proof of Concept Plant. Validation of an in-house metallurgical design flowsheet is essential for funding and market confidence. This process can take up to 12 months or more depending on results achieved.

The PoC plant development process will be staged. The first stage will be as follows:

The process to be followed will be:

Based on success achieved operating the on-site facility, the PoC will be expanded into the main facility immediately upon activation thereof. This will be termed stage 2. The process to be followed will be:

Schedule 

Initial planning for the demo plant to have completed its purpose was set at a time period of 240 days. Contingent issues affecting the schedule are: 

Budget for PoC

The budget for the demo plant currently stands at US$11.5m to be spent after award of the Mining Permit Exploitation and the rising of capital to construct. 

The major cost unknown is not the construction cost and this amount may be adequate. However, the duration of operation of the PoC mine could require significant contingent provisions.

The approach would be that if an early enough confidence can be achieved with the initial 90 days plus 30 days operation of the leach pad and assuming that regulatory licences have been issued, an opportunity is created for an accelerated build of the mine can be commenced, making the extended operation of the PoC mine much more acceptable and somewhat more cost effective. 

Please refer to the PFS announcement available on Harena’s website for a summary of the budget for Proof of Concept Construction Capital. 

Permitting 

The conversion of a mining exploration licence (PR) to a mining exploitation licence (PE) in Madagascar is primarily governed by Law No. 2023-007 (New Mining Code). This process is managed by the Bureau du Cadastre Minier de Madagascar (BCMM) under the authority of the Ministry of Mines.

Current requirements for conversion (transformation) include:

Environmental and Social Compliance

Technical and Financial Requirements

Legal Status and Tenure

Eligibility where the applicant must be a legal entity registered under Malagasy law. Under the new code, a PE is valid for 25 years, renewable once for 15 years (reduced from the previous 40-year term). The permit holder must secure a lease agreement or prior agreement from the landowner for surface rights.

Applications for transformation are currently being processed by the BCMM following the lift of a previous moratorium, though a ministerial order from the Minister in charge of Mines is still required for each final approval. 

Pricing Assumptions and Forecast Methodology

The economic model has been developed using long term pricing from a recognised market analyst and Artificial Intelligence forecast consensus pricing. 

The base case economic indicators have been derived using the market analyst pricing which has been developed prior to the recently highly publicised interventions into the Rare Earths market by an alliance of Western Nations concerned by the dominant position of China in the processing and refining of these products.

In regard to the different forecasts for the magnet metals, prices forecast by AI are Nd (1/3rd), Pr (1/3rd), Dy (2/3rds) and Tb (1/3rd) higher than the more conservative and earlier forecast by the market analyst.    

These forecasts are underpinned by open-sourced comprehensive analysis of global supply and demand trends. On the demand side, projections reflect anticipated growth in key sectors such as electric vehicle drive-trains, wind turbines, energy transition technologies, robotics, and particular military defence applications. Supply assumptions incorporate current global production levels and publicly announced future projects, offering a well-rounded view of the evolving market.

Sensitivity Analysis

A sensitivity analysis was performed for the Project, highlighting its resilience to variations in capital costs, operating costs, REO recoveries and Prices.

The results of the sensitivity analysis variable intervals of +10%/-10% is indicated in the graph below, highlighting that the Project is particularly sensitive to REO prices received and metallurgical recoveries. This would imply that particular care will be taken during the operations of the afore-mentioned Proof of Concept plant to optimise these recoveries, even at the expense of some extra cost inputs.  

Forward Work Program 

The forward work program has been allocated to three distinct estimated time related milestones. 

The Company has developed a Joint Roadmap to production as a communication and planning tool for the Project and financial stakeholders. The stakeholders of the Project have been identified as:

Please refer to the PFS announcement available on Harena’s website for the Ampasindava project process flow mapping. 

Material Assumptions and Outcomes

The PFS was completed with the following material assumptions:

Material Modifying Factors

The following modifying factors were considered in relation to the assessment of this PFS:

Location

The Ampasindava Project is located in the eastern part of the Ampasindava Peninsula, Antsiranana Province on the northwest coast of Madagascar, approximately 500 km north of Madagascar’s capital city Antananarivo. The nearest major town and administrative centre of the region is called Ambanja and is located some 40 km to the northeast of the project area. 

The PFS area has ample land for mine development, processing infrastructure, and future expansions. 

The proposed pits and processing facility will be well-connected via a network of paved roads and private gravel roads, facilitating efficient ore transport. The entire mine zone and proposed heap leach farm will be within 10kms of each other.

Power Supply

Power is not readily available in the project area from the national grid. Power at the mine site, expected to require some 6MW, will be supplied by diesel generator units and supplemented by solar installation and battery storage for low critical applications.

The Company will supply the electrical generator equipment for the heap leach processing plant and a 11kV main substation including 2 incomer circuit breakers. In addition, diesel tanks, pump and piping from the tank to the gensets as well as the paralleling and synchronisation control system. 

Generator specifications KH-1000GF set 6 Including diesel boxes, generator control units and 400V switchgear. Also installed will be a DMC 1500 power command paralleling system to balance loads from the power plant. 

Water Supply and Management 

The Project will incorporate advanced water recycling technologies, including ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis (RO) systems, to minimise freshwater consumption and ensure minimal industrial effluent  discharge. Freshwater is available through on-site bores. Sea water is abundant and nearby as the project is within 3km of the coast. The ore beneficiation process is designed for high water efficiency, with >75% of process water recirculated within the plant. 

Water consumption for the Ampasindava Project is expected to be low. This basis is derived from: 

During periods of extended dry weather, it is proposed that water could be sourced from boreholes up to 10km from the project area, although local groundwater resources potentially also a source, however, limitation on drawing from local groundwater could limit this option.

Labour and Accommodation

The operation is to be staffed by a residential workforce. No fly in – fly out other than specialised technical and management skills is envisaged and the number of expatriates staff is intended to be low, and to be being phased out over the first 7 years of operations.

The region is poverty stricken and there is no shortage of unskilled and semi-skilled labour. A workforce of semi-skilled and artisanal workers is available in nearby townships and population centres. The closest major population centre is Ambanja, which has a population of 50,000.

The township of Anjiabory is approximately 10km from the project site and the intent is to source local operations staff from the immediate districts and train staff accordingly.

Environmental

The Company has submitted seven environmental monitoring reports. These reports were completed in order to be compliant to the regulation of the Office National de l’Environnement (ONE) and the Ministry of Mines of Madagascar. 

From the point of view of environmental considerations, no sensitive area has yet been established within the exploration license for the period. However, the northeastern part of that exploration license, and an area of approximately 100 km², is located in a priority area for the establishment of protected areas.

The environmental and social programs will strive to meet international IFC standards.

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