Toronto-PhosCan Chemical Corp. said Oct. 26 that it is commencing a program to evaluate the potential recovery of niobium and rare earths contained on the Martison phosphate property. PhosCan says the deposit contains low grade niobium mineralization and is also overlaid by a higher-grade niobium and rare earth-enriched lateritic oxide cap in the northern portion of the property. “The ability to economically recover niobium from the phosphate tailings could be a game changer for the Martison Project,” said PhosCan President and CEO Stephen Case. “This could yield a sufficiently large enough by-product credit to possibly revisit the Martison Project as a standalone phosphate concentrate producer, thus substantially reducing the project’s overall capital and operating costs. The recovery of rare earths from the lateritic oxide cap, where the metal value per mt has risen dramatically over the past year, could also substantially enhance the project economics.” The Martison Project, located 70 kilometers north of Hearst, Ont., has consisted of a planned phosphate mine, beneficiation plant, conversion complex, and solid fertilizer production facility. However, in December 2008, in light of the financial markets and fertilizer industry conditions, the project’s bankable feasibility study was substantially curtailed and PhosCan has been weighing its strategic options. In May, it said it had received an unsolicited proposal from a third party; however, further word on that proposal has not been forthcoming (GM May 17, 2010). The company has looked at the niobium option in the past (GM March 30, 2009). Niobium is a metal that improves the strength of steel.
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