Oremex averages 78 per cent silver extraction
2006-05-25 12:59 ET - News Release
Mr. Don Smith reports
OREMEX ANNOUNCES EXCELLENT SILVER RECOVERIES
Oremex Resources Inc. confirms that the small column leaching tests conducted by McClelland Labs in Sparks, Nev., have been completed, with excellent silver extraction results. The average silver extraction for the two columns was 78 per cent. These results were obtained after 106 days of leaching for one of the columns and 162 days of leaching for the other column.
When the columns were shut down, silver was still being extracted. Consequently, it is expected that silver will still be extracted by leaching the material longer during a large scale, commercial cyanidation operation.
The next phase of the company's metallurgical program will involve collecting samples of the drill core from the coming diamond drilling program for additional column testing. These tests will more closely represent the actual processing of mined ore by using rock considered fresh. Oremex will be able to determine the extraction from coarser material -- approximately two centimetres (three-quarters of an inch), compared with the first two columns which used samples collected from the percussion drilling and were relatively fine (minus 0.6 centimetre, or about one-quarter inch). The material for testing will be collected from drill holes in the identified ore zones and composited to reflect what might occur during the actual mining process.
The silver extraction percentages were significantly higher than those from the small-scale bottle roll tests, and this is attributed to the longer leach times in the small column tests. While there were no indications of metallurgical problems in the bottle roll testing, due to the small column and the forced leaching environment from the small columns, the final reagent consumption was higher than anticipated. The company fully expects the reagent consumption data generated in the bottle roll testing to be more representative of what to expect in actual plant practice, but this is an area the company will be examining closely in the next series of testing.
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