TORONTO, Dec. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Plateau Uranium Inc. (“Plateau Uranium” or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:PLU) (OTCQB:PLUUF) (FRANKFURT:QG1), a Uranium and Lithium development company, is pleased to announce initial metallurgical test results from the new Falchani discovery at its Macusani Plateau lithium/uranium project in Peru. The work was completed by TECMMINE, a Peruvian metallurgical consulting company based in Lima, Peru, and was reviewed by Grenvil Dunn of Hydromet (Pty) Ltd. ("Hydromet"). The test work forms part of the Company's continuing efforts to unlock value from the significant lithium resources contained within its uranium deposits.
The Company is continuing additional test work on uranium, lithium and other associated metals with the intention of further optimizing the process and establishing potential capital and operating costs for extracting both lithium and uranium from the Macusani deposits.
Highlights
This leach test work was conducted on samples of the Li-rich tuff recently drilled by the Company at the Falchani discovery. This unit is at least 50m thick and exhibits consistent high lithium grades of 3,500 to 4,300ppm Li (0.75-0.92% Li2O), and remains open at depth and in all directions.
- Early leach results indicate that 77-80% of contained lithium can be extracted from Falchani mineralization, in an open circuit sulphuric acid leach operated at 89°C.
- Lithium continued to leach beyond 12 hours, suggesting further upside of increased Li recoveries over longer leach periods.
- Additional work is planned in Peru and will be followed up with further leaching and precipitation test work at international mineral processing consulting firms, SGS Laboratories and ANSTO, in Australia.
- The outcome of this work will establish estimates for capital and operating costs to produce lithium and possibly other rare metals and will subsequently determine the anticipated, positive impact to the Macusani lithium and uranium project.
Ted O’Connor, CEO of Plateau Uranium commented: “These initial leach test results from the Li-rich Falchani tuff unit are extremely positive, showing very high lithium extraction using our simple, warm sulphuric acid leaching process under atmospheric pressure conditions.
The footprint of these Li-rich tuffs is already large and growing from our on-going drill program at Falchani. We are confident that Falchani will grow as both a uranium and a significant, high-grade lithium project, and will enhance the economic value proposition of our already robust Macusani project.”
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