Nova Minerals Corp (ASX:NVA, NYSE-A:NVA, FRA:QM30) has completed engineering and design work for its fully funded Estelle antimony pilot processing plant in Alaska, clearing the way for construction to begin this quarter.
The plant is designed to produce antimony trisulfide meeting US military-grade specifications through a proprietary hydrometallurgical process, forming an important step in Nova’s strategy to establish an integrated domestic antimony supply chain.
Estelle antimony pilot plant process block flow diagram.
Project moves into execution phase
Engineering work covers the Whiskey Bravo front-end processing site, as well as beneficiation, refining and supporting infrastructure at Port MacKenzie Processing Facility.
Whiskey Bravo and Port MacKenzie Steinert ore sorter.
Nova chief executive Christopher Gerteisen said completion of the design represented another major milestone, with the project now entering the execution phase following extensive metallurgical testing and flowsheet development.
“We continue to make rapid progress on the antimony project and remain ahead of schedule, with another major milestone now completed," Gerteisen said.
"The engineering and design plan has been developed based on extensive metallurgical test work and process flowsheet development. With this work complete, and procurement of key equipment now finalised, the project has entered the execution phase."
Ore extraction and plant construction are the next major steps as the company works toward near-term antimony production.
Equipment procurement is already well advanced, with more than 40 containers carrying major plant components on their way to Port MacKenzie.
The company has sourced equipment from a recently decommissioned North American beneficiation circuit, including crushers, a ball mill, screens, flotation cells and conveyors. Ore sorters were acquired new. Nova expects these acquisitions to shorten procurement lead times, improve capital efficiency and accelerate construction readiness.
Port MacKenzie ball mill.
Integrated processing operation
Bulk sample material will be collected from the Stibium and Styx prospects within the Estelle Project before being transported to Whiskey Bravo for crushing and initial ore sorting.
Selected material will then be moved to Port MacKenzie for further crushing, beneficiation and refining. The finished antimony trisulfide product will be filtered, dried and packaged for shipment.
The modular plant has also been designed to support future expansion into antimony trioxide and antimony metal production and could eventually process feedstock from other regional and international projects.
You can find more information about the Estelle Gold and Critical Minerals Project through the interactive Vrify 3D animations, presentations and videos, which are all available on the
company’s website. www.novamineralscorp.com