Orbite Confirms the Association of Rare Earths and Rare Metals With Alumina at its Grande-Vallee Aluminous Clay Deposit
April 18 2012 - 7:00AM
Marketwired Canada
Orbite Aluminae Inc. ("Orbite" or the "Company") (TSX:ORT) is pleased to
announce that recently completed assays of clay samples from the Grande-Vallee
Marin Sector support the previously known correlation between and association of
potentially high-value rare earth elements ("REE") and rare metal elements
("RM") with alumina. These samples were taken from drilling programs conducted
by the Company between 2007 and 2011. The REE and RM are by-products derived
from the Company's patented technology, which extracts alumina from the
aluminous clay deposit. An additional systematic assay program is currently
underway for pulps obtained from 2007 to 2011 clay sample drilling. The partial
results for this drilling program are presented below.
In parallel, pilot plant tests performed in Europe confirmed that the Company's
patented chemical process enables a high recovery rate and individual extraction
of REE and RM from clay in the Grande-Vallee deposit.
Finally, as a result of this latest assay program, Orbite has begun to convert
its Cap Chat pilot plant into a full-scale production facility for high-purity
alumina (HPA). With 70% of detailed engineering work completed, the Company is
now at the stage of ordering major equipment and Orbite is awaiting final
environmental authorization to begin specific construction work. Furthermore,
the Company is pursuing its core business of developing a facility to extract
smelter-grade alumina (SGA), from aluminous clay at its Grande-Vallee deposit,
for which 95% of the basic engineering work is presently completed.
Background on the assay and drilling program
In August 2011, an initial series of 181 samples was selected and assayed,
notably for alumina (Al2O3), iron (Fe2O3), silica (SiO2), magnesium oxide (MgO),
and REE and RM. A total of 166 of these samples (3m-long) came from 16 drill
holes located at the future open pit site of the Company's aluminous clay
deposit at Grande-Vallee, and 15 others from randomly selected samples in other
drill holes within the Marin Sector. During the same period, a second series of
9 samples from 6 exploration drill holes in the Simoneau Sector in the most
western area of the Orbite Grande-Vallee property was selected and assayed,
notably for alumina (Al2O3), iron (Fe2O3), silica (SiO2), magnesium oxide (MgO),
and REE and RM. The detailed assay results are available for consultation at
www.orbitealuminae.com. The samples were assayed according to the ME-MS81 and
ME-MS61 protocols of the ALS Minerals laboratory in Vancouver, British Columbia,
the details of which are available at www.alsglobal.com/minerals.aspx. In terms
of laboratory duplicates and standards pertaining to its sampling program,
Orbite has adopted the quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) protocols
of ALS Minerals.
In February 2012, as part of the normal course of its business, the Company
asked the independent ALS Minerals laboratory in Vancouver to assay for REE and
RM a third series comprising 110 pulp samples from 3m-long core samples
available from the 2011 drilling campaign, and 98 pulp samples from 15 cm long
cores available from the 2007 drilling campaign. Details of these assay results
are also available on the Orbite website. All of the above samples were taken
from the proposed site of the Company's future mining operations, related to its
vast aluminous clay deposit at Grande-Vallee, and had already been assayed for
alumina, hematite, silica, and other oxides.
The following table provides an overview of the average grades for alumina
(Al2O3), iron (Fe2O3), silica (SiO2), magnesium oxide (MgO), REE and certain RM
from the three above-mentioned series of samples. The REE are subdivided into
light rare earths (LREE) and heavy rare earths (HREE).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oxides, REE & Average grade Average grade Average grade Average grade
RM 1st series 2nd series 3rd series 1st series
Marin Sector Simoneau Sector Marin Sector Marin Sector
(2011) (2011) (2007 & 2011) (2011)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
OXIDE
ELEMENTS in
% Claystone Claystone Claystone Mudstone
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Al2O3 -
Alumina 24.3 24.8 24.2 19.9
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fe2O3 -
Hematite 8.5 8.8 8.7 7.9
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SiO2 - Silica 50.9 51.3 50.5 56.5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
MgO-
magnesium
oxide 1.5 1.7 1.6 2.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LREE in ppm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
La -
Lanthanum 78.9 74.5 74.2 66.9
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ce - Cerium 159.2 162.4 151.4 129.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pr -
Praseodymium 19.8 20.0 18.8 15.8
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nd -
Neodymium 74.7 71.2 71.3 58.3
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sm - Samarium 14.1 13.9 14.0 11.0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eu - Europium 2.6 2.4 2.5 2.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gd -
Gadolinium 11.2 10.7 11.2 9.0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
HREE in ppm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tb - Terbium 1.6 1.6 1.7 1.4
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dy -
Dysprosium 9.9 9.4 9.6 8.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ho - Holmium 2.0 1.8 1.8 1.6
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Er - Erbium 5.2 5.0 5.2 4.5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tu - Thulium n/a n/a n/a n/a
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yb -
Ytterbium 4.8 4.5 4.6 4.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lu - Lutetium 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.6
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Y - Yttrium 51.0 49.3 46.5 43.6
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
RM en ppm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sc - Scandium 16.1 17.8 15.8 17.0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ga - Gallium 33.4 33.6 33.8 28.4
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hf - Hafnium 5.3 n/a 5.0 5.7
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
These results strongly support the consistency as well as the close association
of REE and RM with the alumina in the aluminous clay over the general area of
the proposed future operations site in the Marin Sector within the Company's
deposit site at Grande-Vallee. The assay results for certain REE and RM in the
drill holes in the Simoneau Sector, located more than 13 km West of the Marin
Sector, in the same geological horizon of aluminous clay in the L'Orignal
Formation, further point to a strong continuity and homogeneity between these
two sectors. An assay of a fourth series of some 1,600 pulps samples is
currently underway to cover samples from the 2008, 2009, and 2010 drilling
campaigns.
Finally, the latest pilot plant tests performed in Europe confirmed the capacity
to produce a chloride filtrate, after the iron removal within the final
concentration steps of the Company's patented chemical process, which is highly
concentrated in REE and RM. Such an approach allows a high recovery rate and
individual extraction of REE and RM afterwards. These results demonstrate
Orbite's process capability to recover the REE and RM from the clay of the
Grande-Vallee deposit, which are initially present in low concentrations.
The technical content of this press release has been reviewed and approved by
Alex Knox, P. Geol., independent consultant, and Mr. Denis Primeau, Eng., Chief
Engineer at Orbite, both qualified persons under the terms of Regulation 43-101
Respecting Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (Quebec).
About Orbite
Orbite owns 100% of the mining rights on approximately 6,400 hectares of a
Grande-Vallee property, the site of an aluminous clay deposit located 23 km to
the south of Grande-Vallee, and a 2,600 m2 full-scale pilot plant in Cap Chat,
in the Gaspe region. The NI 43-101 report issued in August 2011 has identified
an Indicated Resource of about 1 billion tonnes of aluminous clay in part of the
deposit. The Company also owns the intellectual property rights to a unique
Canada and U.S. patented process for extracting alumina from aluminous ores and
for which patents are also pending in other countries. www.orbitealuminae.com
Forward-looking statements
Certain information contained in this document may include "forward-looking
information". Without limiting the foregoing, the information and any
forward-looking information may include statements regarding projects, costs,
objectives and future returns of the Company or hypotheses underlying these
items. In this document, words such as "may", "would", "could", "will",
"likely", "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "plan", "estimate" and
similar words and the negative form thereof are used to identify forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as guarantees of
future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications
of whether, or the times at or by which, such future performance will be
achieved. Forward-looking statements and information are based on information
available at the time and/or the Company management's good-faith beliefs with
respect to future events and are subject to known or unknown risks,
uncertainties, assumptions and other unpredictable factors, many of which are
beyond the Company's control. These risks uncertainties and assumptions include,
but are not limited to, those described in the section of the Management's
Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) entitled "Risk and Uncertainties" as filed on
November 14, 2011 on SEDAR, and could cause actual events or results to differ
materially from those projected in any forward-looking statements. The Company
does not intend, nor does it undertake, any obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking information or statements contained in this document to reflect
subsequent information, events or circumstances or otherwise, except as required
by applicable laws.
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