Project History and Experience

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PROJECT HISTORY AND EXPERIENCE

Bateman Prior Involvement with Boleo :

The current Feasibility Study, about to be undertake by Bateman, is a logical extension of the due dilligence work conducted by Bateman on the Boleo Process Design in late 2001. This exercise culminated in the delivery of a Pre-Feasibility Study document to Mintec International Corporation in 2002.

This study was carried out in two phases. The first phase comprised a review in which the existing testwork database was evaluated in detail to determine whether a number of proposed circuit modifications to the original flowsheet were viable and offered promise of lower capital and operating costs. Seven options were reviewed and ultimately a single "base case" option was selected for a more detailed analysis. The second phase, detailed the process and engineering design and documents the derivation of capital and operating costs for the selected "base case" option.

The test work review phase was completed in Vancouver by a team of Bateman process specialists working in concert with the process consultant, Dr David Dreisinger, with input from members of the original study team. The process and engineering design phase of the study was completed out of Bateman engineering offices in Brisbane and Perth in Australia.

Extensive batch and pilot plant test work had previously been undertaken on the full range of Boleo ore types, albeit for the purpose of developing a different flow sheet. Fortunately a large proportion of the test work was relevant to both the original and current process flow sheet. The basic leaching process is sound but a superior, more cost effective means of metal recovery is now being pursued. The Bateman flowsheet proposes the use of a high rate CCD solid-liquid separation circuit followed by base metal recovery from the CCD wash solution. The new flowsheet involves acid leaching of the copper, zinc, and cobalt, followed by rejection of the leach residue and separate recovery of copper and zinc metal and cobalt either as a metal product or a high value cobalt precipitate. Fewer unit operations have resulted in lower capital and operating costs and the use of conventional unit processes will lower technical risk.

Designing and constructing plants for ores with high clay content is well within Bateman's current experience base. As recent experience in the nickel laterite plants in Western Australia has shown, large CCD circuits can operate effectively on difficult clayey ores to recover dissolved metal values. Further test work is required in this area to confirm performance projections and this work is soon to be undertaken at a laboratory facility in the USA.

RELEVANT COPPER AND BASE METALS PROJECTS

Project	Client	Year	Service Provided
Concentrate Leach Project	Erdenet Mining Corporation	2004	Scoping Study for the Erdenet Mine for a 170,000t/a copper cathode project using two stage autoclave leaching followed by SXEW to treat existing flotation concentrate.
Birla Mt Gordon Conversion Project	Birla	2004	Engineering & Procurement (EPM) services for the conversion of the hydrometallurgical plant facility at Mt Gordon to a concentrator, producing a concentrate for export to India.
Sepon Copper Project	Oxiana Resources	2003	EPCM for the Sepon Copper Project for a 60,000t/a copper cathode project using atmospheric and autoclave leaching followed by SXEW.
Sepon Copper Feasibility Study	Oxiana Resources	2002	Feasibility Study for the Sepon Copper Project for a 60,000t/a copper cathode project using atmospheric and autoclave leaching followed by SXEW.
Sepon Copper Scoping Study	Oxiana Resources	2001	Scoping study for a copper leach SX/EW plant in Laos.
Gibraltar Copper Project	Gibraltar Mines Ltd-CESL	2001	Feasibility Study for a 25,000tpa copper leach SX/EW plant using the CESL high temperature high pressure chloride leach process.
Boleo Project Scoping Study	Mintec International	2001/2002	Scoping study for a copper leach SX/EW plant in Mexico's Baja California Sur.
Chambishi Cobalt Project	Chambishi Metals	2001	Refurbishment and modification of existing cobalt refining facility including neutralisation and iron removal circuit modifications, installation of new dewatering steps, and design of new zinc solvent extraction circuit. Zambia.
Chambishi Metals Project	Anglovaal Mining	2001	EPC of a 40 MW DC arc smelter and associated works, Zambia.
Tail Gas Scrubbing Project, Tasmania	Pasminco Hobart Smelters	2000	Design and construction management of tail gas scrubbing system incorporating saltwater to scrub SO2 from refinery offgases in packed towers. Includes seawater pumping system.
MIM Albion Project	MIM Holdings Limited	2000	Study into the development of a demonstration plant utilising MIM Albion atmospheric leach process for low-grade copper bleed streams.
Lady Loretta Project	Noranda Pacific Pty Ltd	2000	Undertaking of bankable feasibility study into development of fly-in fly-out mine in northwest Queensland. Scope involved all aspects of the Project including mining, processing, infrastructure, power supply, environment and government interaction.
Labuk Copper Project, Malaysia	Leadstar Sdn Bhd	1999	Study and basic engineering of copper process plant incorporating oxidate chloride leaching, thickening, filtration and SX/EW and effluent treatment.
Potgietersrust Concentrator	Anglo American Platinum	1998	EPCM contract to increase production to 5Mtpa of platinum group metals ore
Mt Gordon Expansion Project	Aberfoyle / Western Metals Limited	1998	EPCM for $93m low-pressure autoclave leach, SX/EW plant to produce 44,000tpa of copper cathode.
Guelb Moghrein Copper/Gold Project	General Gold Resources	1997	Bankable feasibility study for the construction of facility to treat copper/gold refractory sulphide ore body. Flowsheet comprised crushing, grinding, flotation, pressure oxidation, liquid/solid separation, copper SX/EW and cyanidation of residue.
Red Dome Gold Mine	Nuigini Mining	1997	Study into treatment options processing concentrates containing high arsenic. Options considered included pressure oxidation, bacterial leaching, roast-acid-leach. All were followed by copper SX/EW and cyanidation of the residue.
Yakabindie Nickel Project Stage 1	Dominion Mining Limited	1997	Detailed design of processing plant for nickel sulphide ores. The flowsheet included pressure leaching, CCD, iron neutralisation, cobalt solvent extraction, nickel solvent extraction, cobalt precipitation, and nickel electrowinning.
Great Australia Copper Project, Queensland	Cloncurry Mining NL	1996	Design and construction of 5,500 tpa copper, heap leach, SX/EW plant. Scope encompassed heap design, all ponds and process plant.
Nickel/ Copper Refinery Upgrade	Impala Refineries	1996	Design and construction services for upgrading the Nickel Copper Refinery, including autoclave modifications and filtration equipment installation.
Hartley Platinum Project	BHP World Minerals	1996	EPCM for a 160,000tpm platinum/ nickel/copper concentrator, a smelter and base metal refinery and all surface infrastructure, in Zimbabwe.
Empress Nickel Refinery	Rio Tinto (Zimbabwe)	1996	EPCM contract for a nickel/copper matte processing plant including matte milling, atmospheric leach, copper EW, nickel EW and neutralisation.
Sanyati Copper Mine Company	Munyati Mining	1995	EPC contract for a 5,000tpa heap leach SX/EW copper plant in Zimbabwe.

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