Nova Minerals delivers clear pathway to high gold recoveries

• Nova Minerals releases conceptual flowsheet for RPM deposit at Estelle Gold and Critical Minerals project, outlining clear path to high gold recoveries
• Advanced sorting tech expected to increase volume of high-grade feed to processing circuits, optimising resources and maximising orebody value
• Test work ongoing to advance flowsheet and feed into Pre-Feasibility Study

Special Report: Nova Minerals has taken another major step towards production at its flagship 9.9Moz Estelle Gold and Critical Minerals Project, unveiling a conceptual flowsheet for the pivotal RPM deposit in Alaska.

The flowsheet demonstrates a clear path to boosting gold recoveries and cutting processing costs at the 1.24Moz deposit and it will go towards finalisation of the well-progressed pre-feasibility study for RPM.

The PFS and the upcoming wider project expansion studies will help Nova (ASX:NVA) decide on whether to proceed with a start-up mine at RPM or a larger-scale option. This would including the bulk tonnage Korbel deposit plus other regional prospects.

The first strategy would draw on internal funds for organic expansion. The second would leverage the interest of larger gold miners as strategic partners.

Unlocking value

The proposed multi-pathway processing strategy integrates advanced ore sorting technology to optimise returns across varying ore grades.

Under the flowsheet high-grade ore above 2 grams per tonne (g/t) gold will be processed directly through the carbon in pulp (CIP)/ carbon in leach (CIL) circuit to target maximum recovery from the richest material.

Ore grading below 2g/t will be directed to an ore sorter, where early test work has yielded highly encouraging results. A 1,000kg bulk ore test conducted with Steinert Mining upgraded 1.32 g/t material to 5.72 g/t –  an impressive 4.33-times increase in a single pass.

Lower-grade ore rejected by the sorter will undergo heap leaching, with column tests showing potential gold recoveries as high as 68.7 per cent.

CIP/CIL test work continues to refine recovery strategies for the upcoming PFS.

High Pressure Grinding Rolls (HPGR) crushing tests are also underway with the aim to further enhance energy efficiency and reduce power costs.

World class potential in view

CEO Christopher Gerteisen said results underscored RPM’s robust potential: “We are extremely pleased with the results emerging from our ongoing metallurgical test work program at the RPM Deposit, which we believe continues to demonstrate the exceptional quality and scalability of the Estelle Project.

“The ability to extract up to 68.7 per cent gold recovery from lower-grade material through heap leaching, combined with a 4.33 times upgrade using ore sorting technology, is a significant technical breakthrough.”

Gerteisen said the multi-pronged flowsheet approach – incorporating ore sorting, heap leaching, and CIP/CIL processing, had the potential to be a best-in-class strategy for maximum gold recovery, efficient capital deployment and lower processing costs.

“We believe RPM has the hallmarks of a low-cost, high-margin gold producer. With CIP/CIL test work well underway and further optimisation on ore sorting and HPGR crushing still to come, we believe the upside could be significant,” he said.

“These preliminary results strengthen our belief that Estelle is a potential world-class, long-life gold district capable of delivering sustained value to shareholders.

“Nova remains focused on delivering the next major North American gold mine, and these latest results from RPM bring us another step closer to achieving that vision.”

Critical project

The results from the RPM deposit swiftly follow Nova forging closer ties with key Alaskan lawmakers and other stakeholders, and a key road development that will support Estelle’s progress winning high-level backing.

As well as gold Estelle also hosts high-grade antimony, which positions Nova to potentially follow the path of MP Materials and Perpetua Resources, which have both secured significant US Department of Defense (DoD) grants for critical mineral supply chain initiatives.

Following a positive technical site assessment by the DoD’s critical materials team, Nova is continuing engagement as Estelle moves toward becoming a near-term producer of gold and antimony.

This article was developed in collaboration with Nova Minerals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.