First Phosphate Corp. (CSE:PHOS, OTCQB:FRSPF) announced that it has collected a 5,000-kilogram bulk sample from its Bégin-Lamarche phosphate project in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec to be used for metallurgical testing to refine the recovery process of critical minerals.
The company aims to refine the process for the recovery of apatite (phosphate), magnetite (iron), and ilmenite (titanium).
The bulk sample includes 2,000 kilograms each from the project’s Northern and Mountain Zones and 1,000 kilograms from the Southern Zone.
The bulk sampling follows preliminary metallurgical work completed in June 2023, which demonstrated positive recovery results and confirmed the technical feasibility of processing the ore on a small scale.
The company is now scaling up to a semi-industrial pilot process to validate flowsheet performance, optimize parameters, and support future economic and feasibility studies.
"The success of the 2023 pilot tests confirmed the potential of our project to efficiently produce critical minerals essential to the energy transition,” First Phosphate CEO John Passalacqua said in a statement.
“Advancing to semi-industrial scale is a key step toward developing a robust industrial process.”
An updated technical report will be released following the completion of the pilot plant trials.
In addition to bulk sampling, First Phosphate said it has conducted surface stripping and channel sampling in the Northern and Southern Zones, which aimed to further delineate the geology and validate previous drill interpretations.
In the Northern Zone, surface stripping revealed oxide-apatite-bearing ultramafic rock with an average of 20% apatite and localized concentrations up to 45%.
The Southern Zone showed a troctolite assemblage with 10% to 15% apatite and ultramafic rock with 25% apatite.
The geological observations from the surface work have confirmed interpretations made during earlier drilling campaigns.