Blackstone Minerals' nickel sulfide report on northern Vietnam mine approved

Vietnam has approved an exploration and reserves report for the Ta Khoa nickel mine in the northern province of Son La by Australia’s Blackstone Minerals Ltd.

The approval by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) was mentioned in a Tuesday release by the Australian firm, which also called it a “significant milestone in permitting and licensing its projects in northern Vietnam.

The approval opens the door for the firm to apply for mining licenses for the Ban Phuc, Ban Khoa, King Snake and Ban Chang mines, it added.

Along with the recently-approved national mineral resource plan until 2030, the approval will enable it to advance new nickel sulfide targets and grow the resources and reserves in Ta Khoa adjacent to the proposed mining operations, Blackstone Minerals said.

Blackstone Minerals was granted a mineral exploration license in July 2014 and conducted exploration activities for four years. The firm said its development strategy was underpinned by the ability to secure nickel concentrate and Ta Khoa mine was an emerging area with untested exploration targets.

In August, Blackstone Minerals’ projects, namely Ta Khoa Nickel and Ta Khoa Refinery, were added to the national mineral resource plan. The plan mentions a production capacity allowance of 150,000 tons of Nickel:Cobalt:Manganese (NCM) precursor cathode active material per year, equivalent to 420,000 tons of nickel sulfate. It also permits the construction of a new concentrator for the project.

Also in August, Blackstone Minerals said its pilot program of running a concentrator was a success, churning out 7.5 tons of concentrate samples from Ta Khoa Refinery after 97,280 labor hours.