www.toroenergy.com.au
Toro Energy (ASX: TOE) is well placed to operate one of the first new Western Australian uranium mines. The company is also an explorer in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, South Australia and in the African country of Namibia.
The Wiluna Project is at an advanced stage in government assessment and approval, with Toro planning to commit to construction late next year for first production in 2013. The project hosts two shallow (generally less than 10m deep) calcrete deposits with a Measured, Indicated and Inferred resource of 24.4Mlbs of contained Uranium (U3O8) in the current project approved.
Toro Energy pilot plant testwork part of continuous assessment of Wiluna Uranium Project
Toro Energy (ASX: TOE) in another step towards unlocking the potential of the Wiluna Uranium Project, and has kicked off a pilot plant testwork program.
This latest move by Toro comes hot on the heels of the public review phase milestone which was reached less than a fortnight ago, with the company entering the public exhibition phase of government assessment from 25 July, 2011.
Significantly, Wiluna will be the first of Western Australia’s modern era uranium projects to reach this critical stage and the WA government is known to be supportive of the project which has the potential to become world class.
The new testwork is part of the company's continuing assessment of Wiluna, which involves the use of ore samples taken during last year's resource trial pit, and is being undertaken off-site in compliance with all relevant government approvals.
This follows the successful completion of detailed benchscale processing testwork which has confirmed the viability and basic parameters of the alkaline agitated leach process.
Toro outlined the program of pilot testwork which involves a pilot plant process test, which will run a continuous processing operation on a pilot scale at around half a tonne of ore per day, or 20 kilograms of ore per hour.
The object of the testwork is to finalise design parameters under continuous flow conditions for final feasibility; produce sample product for converter delivery and sample testing; and optimisation of operating parameters.
The testwork involves two ten day series of continuous process runs, with results forecast to be received by the end of August.
