NioCorp Developments (NB-T) Produces The First Scandium Material From Elk Creek
July 13, '16 - NR
NioCorp Developments announces that the first sample of scandium material has been produced from its Elk Creek, Nebraska resource. The sample was produced recently during the on-going bench testing and optimization program of the company’s scandium recovery operations at SGS in Lakefield, Ontario.
The scandium precipitate was produced through a process that is a precursor to the commercial process that will make higher-purity commercial grade scandium trioxide at NioCorp’s Elk Creek, Nebraska mine and processing facility.
“This may very well be the first scandium material made from a U.S. domestic in-situ mineral resource in decades,” said Mark A. Smith, Executive Chairman and CEO of NioCorp. “While this is not the final commercial-grade product we intend to make, this production marks a major milestone for the Elk Creek project. We have moved one step closer to bringing this project to commercial viability, and we look forward to emerging as one of the largest producers of scandium in the world.”
“The coming scandium revolution has major positive implications for the State of Nebraska, for a multitude of industries, and for global efforts to reduce mass, increase fuel efficiency, and cut air emissions from surface transportation, aerospace, and mega-infrastructure systems,” Mr. Smith added. “NioCorp looks forward to playing a leading role in driving this revolution forward.”
Scott Honan, President of Elk Creek Resources Corp, the NioCorp subsidiary that is developing the Elk Creek Project, said: ”The development team is very proud of this accomplishment, and it complements the results we achieved last year when we produced ferroniobium from our Elk Creek resource. We will continue to aggressively pursue the additional work necessary to complete the development of the scandium recovery process with the objective of producing commercial grade scandium materials during the upcoming piloting of the scandium recovery operation.”
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
"Mark Smith”
Executive Chairman, CEO, and Director
Qualified Persons: Eric Larochelle, B.Eng of SMH Process Innovation, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, is responsible for the Elk Creek hydrometallurgical program and has read and approved the technical information contained in this news release.
For More Information
Contact Jim Sims, VP of External Affairs, NioCorp Developments Ltd., 855-2-NIOCORP (855-264-6267), jim.sims@niocorp.com
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