Nickel - Sulphide and Laterite
Nickel deposits are generally found in two forms: sulphide or laterite. About 73% of the world's known nickel resources are laterites found mainly in tropical areas such as Indonesia, Cuba, Columbia and New Caledonia. The remaining 27% are sulphide deposits with notable locations in Canada and Russia. Like Australia, Brazil has both sulphide and laterite nickel deposits.
Currently, the majority of today’s nickel is produced from sulphide deposits, as it is easier and cheaper to mine and process than lateritic ore. However, known sulphide deposits, which are large in scale and of high nickel grade, are depleting. As a result a higher proportion of future production is expected to come from laterite deposits.
Sulphide
Sulphide type nickel deposits are formed in essentially the same manner as platinum deposits. These sulphide ores are generally found hundreds of metres below surface, and generally require underground mining infrastructure. The Santa Rita sulphide deposit is close to surface and able to be mined via open cut techniques. The main benefit to sulphide ores is that they can be concentrated using a simple physical separation technique called flotation.
Laterite
The process of forming laterite deposits is essentially similar to the formation of gold laterite deposits. Laterites are traditional to the surface, about 15 to 20m deep, and occur where nickel sulphides have been converted to oxide ores. Being closer to the surface, laterites can be mined via open-cut methods. However, there is no simple separation technique for nickel laterites. The rock must be completely molten or dissolved to enable nickel extraction. As a result, laterite projects require large economies of scale at higher capital cost per unit of capacity to be viable. They are also generally much higher cash-cost producers than sulphide operations.
Competent Persons Statement
The information in this presentation that relates to Exploration Results for the Santa Rita Nickel Deposit is based on information compiled by Mr. Lauritz Barnes who is a Member of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr Barnes is consultant to Mirabela Nickel Limited. Mr Barnes has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the ‘Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserve’ and is a Qualified Person in accordance with NI 43]101. Mr Barnes consents to the inclusion in the presentation of the matters based on their information in the form and context in which it appears.
The information in this presentation that relates to Mineral Resources for the Santa Rita Nickel Deposit is based on information compiled by Mr Lauritz Barnes and Mr Brett Gossage, who are both Members of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr Barnes is consultant to Mirabela Nickel Limited and Mr Gossage is the Senior Principal with Coffey Mining Pty Ltd, independent resource consultants engaged by Mirabela Nickel Limited. Mr Barnes and Mr Gossage have sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which they are undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the ‘Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserve’ and are each a Qualified Person in accordance with NI 43]101. Mr Barnes and Mr Gossage consent to the inclusion in the presentation of the matters based on their information in the form and context in which it appears.
The information in this presentation that relates to Ore Reserves, Mining Production and Cost Estimation for the Santa Rita Nickel Deposit is based on information compiled by Mr Carlos Guzman who is a Member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr Guzman is a professional Mining Engineer and Project Manager with NCL Brasil and is a consultant to Mirabela Nickel Limited. Mr Guzman qualifies as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the ‘Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserve’ and is a Qualified Person in accordance with NI 43]101. Mr Guzman consents to the inclusion in the presentation of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
All other technical information in this presentation has been reviewed by Mr Nicholas Poll, who is a Member of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr Poll is the Managing Director of the Company. Mr Poll consents to the inclusion in the presentation of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
