Cajalbana
Nickel/Cobalt
Cajalbana, Nickel/Cobalt
Situated in the north-west of Cuba. It remains the only nickel prospective area in this part of the country with all previous production occurring in the eastern provinces (Sherritt with the Moa project as an example). Preliminary estimates provided by the Cuban Government provide for a projected annualized production of 20,000 tpa of nickel and 2,000 tpa of cobalt. Previous work on the project provide for an initial estimate of 51Mt of ore with a 1.1% nickel and 0.06% cobalt containing 535,500t of nickel and 30,600t of cobalt respectively.
The Cajalbana mineral deposit is a nickel - cobalt ore body, a predominantly lateritic type with a saprolite lateritic profile.
Historic work identified substantial mineralisation within the lateritised ultramafic plateau. It included ground penetrating radar and a diamond drilling program across the entire plateau indicating a min. of 51Mt of open pit ore to a depth of 12 meters grading 1.1% nickel and 0.06% cobalt.
These findings were the basis for the most recent studies undertaken by the Cuban Government (Juan Ruiz Quintana et al) and published in the scientific journal Mineralia Slovaca in 2020. It has indicated that a high-pressure acid leech (HPAL) processing plant could be utilised in the production of both a Nickel and a separate Cobalt product.
Preliminary estimates by the Cuban government are for annualised production levels of 20,000t per annum of nickel and 2,000t per annum of cobalt
Development Plan: $1.5m to fund a pre-feasibility study to determine the optimum economics and size for a stand-alone mine and production producing nickel and cobalt.
| Cajalbana Project - Snaphsot | |
|---|---|
| Status | Development Target |
| Location | Near Pinar del Rio and 140km west of Havana (Road, freight or barge to Mariel). EMINCAR (Trafiguar JV) used Australian company Intermodal Services Group to develop specially designed tipping containers. |
| Commodity | Nickel/Cobalt |
| Deposit Type | Lateritic, Ultramafic |
| Mining Method | Opencut |
| Ore Resource* | 51Mt |
| Approximate Depth | Surface - 12 metres |
| Ownership** | CMC 49% , Cuban Government 51% |
| Nickel Grade (%) | 1.05 |
| Cobalt Grade (%) | 0.06 |
| Mine Life (Years)*** | 18 (est.) |
| Product | A concentrate is likely to be sold ‘at gate’ |
| Cajalbana Resource by Deposit | Ore (Mt) | Grade Nickel (%) | Contained Nickel (%) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cajalbana | 51 | 1.05 | 535,500 | ||
| Grade Cobalt (%) | Contained Cobalt (%) | ||||
| .06 | 30,600 | ||||
*Not JORC compliant. Verification of JORC resources and reserves are to be undertaken with existing data as part of the pre-feasibility studies.
**Economic interest to CMC is higher than equity stake % with consideration to management fees. In addition, all invested capital is to be repaid to CMC prior to any payments to the Cuban government. Significant tax concessions will also apply to the JV
***Mineralia Slovaca, Main geological and mineralogical characteristics of the Cajalbanalateriricdeposit, Pinar del Rio, Cuba (page 31) (2020)
