May 22 2013
The management of Arianne Phosphate (“Arianne” or the “Company”) is very pleased to announce that pilot-scale testing of Lac à Paul phosphate ore has now confirmed the commercial scale-ability of column flotation in achieving 39% P2O5 concentrate with a recovery rate of 90%.
With completion of its Validation of Apatite Flowsheet Using Column Flotation Report, Corem, of Québec City, (Québec) has demonstrated that the Paul Zone ore can be processed with this commonly-used technology to achieve superior product quality at a very high recovery rate, well surpassing the quality and recovery of most phosphate rock mines worldwide. A 39% phosphate concentrate will make Zone Paul’s product one of the most sought-after phosphate concentrates worldwide, particularly to high-value industrial, animal feed and food-grade phosphate product producers.
The following is an excerpt from the report: “The metallurgical results demonstrate that the flowsheet with two cleaner columns and a cleaner scavenger column was the most promising circuit to meet the required apatite grade and recovery.” Further that “The apatite concentrate produced met the requested quality targets (P2O5 >38.5%) with a high yield recovery (>90%).” The complete report will be soon available onwww.arianne-inc.com. Interested parties are encouraged to read the entire report.
This metallurgical testwork and its conclusions will be used in development of the Company’s Feasibility Study, scheduled for completion in summer 2013. With this confirmation of the flowsheet, the Company will finalize design of the processing facilities to produce phosphate rock concentrate, our finished product. The scope of this work includes a mineralogical assessment, testing of various grinds and particle sizing, reagents, conditioning/flotation parameters, settling/filtration characteristics, and concentrate quality.
“This pilot-scale test confirms column flotation as the optimal processing technology for Zone Paul ore” commented Jim Cowley, President of Arianne. “Column flotation is reliable and cost-effective, and this testing demonstrates that it can produce a superior quality concentrate from Zone Paul ore on a commercial scale.” He also stated: “This latest metallurgical test represents another essential milestone for Arianne, thereby confirming both a critical process design element and a product marketing advantage for the Lac à Paul Project.”
Arianne Phosphate (www.arianne-inc.com) owns and is developing the Lac a Paul phosphate-titanium deposit that will produce a superior grade apatite concentrate grading 39% P2O5. The Company currently has 77 M shares issued.
Qualified Person
Mr. Daniel Boulianne, P.Geo., Qualified Person for the Company as per NI 43-101, have approved this press release.