
​PROJECT & PROCESS DEVELOPMENT
ABN 26 889 201 980
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT PHASES
Scoping Study
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Aim to find an economic basis for the project to justify further work
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Decide if a conventional process can be used
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Start process testwork on costly steps such as comminution, leaching and recovery process for product
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Determine Mineralogy and Chemical composition
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Estimate capital and operating costs to Order of magnitude level
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Early phase marketing study
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For a well known process and mineral can do scoping study with little test work
Prefeasibility Study
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Aim of PFS is to select the project option to develop
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Evaluate all options economically including alternate processes, products, sites, size of project
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Detailed risk analysis
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Detailed market study
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Identify financing and off take partners
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Determine capital and operating costs for viable options to +/_ 20%-25% accuracy
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Detailed financial model
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Range of studies such as environmental, site selection etc
Detailed Feasibility Study
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Aim of DFS is to develop selected option to obtain project finance
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Completely define process
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Improve capital and operating cost accuracy to +/- 10%-15%
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Detailed risk analysis
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Complete 10% of engineering
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Obtain environmental and other approvals
FEED
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Front End Engineering and design - a loose term covering engineering from DFS stage to start of construction
Detailed Engineering
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Complete process engineering deliverables
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Detailing of the DFS defined process to obtain a control estimate +/- 5% -10%
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Complete 40% of engineering
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Sufficient detail to purchase major and long lead equipment
Construction
Commissioning
Operation

As the project progresses the ability to change the final project value decreases and cost of making changes increases. Not selecting the optimum project option in PFS can dramatically reduce overall project value.
TEST WORK STAGES
Preliminary
Desk top tests to prove process flowsheet
Basic Design Information
Closed Circuit Tests
Locked cycle
Variability tests
Piloting
Demonstration Plant
PRELIMINARY /SCOPING TEST WORK
Mineralogy
Chemical composition
Evaluate if a conventional process can be used
Sighter tests for key processes such as comminution and leaching
Establish simple test to use to evaluate ore amenability to process
Can evaulate known ores and process with little test work
PRE-FEASIBILITY STUDY TEST WORK
Aim of the PFS testwork is to confirm the process selected
Bulk of testing is during the PFS
Evaluate different processes & products
Process steps tested firstly separately at bench scale
Combined process steps then tested with recycles streams
Recycles in equipment that cannot easily be run continuously on small scale be may be done in locked cycles
Vendor test work to obtain physical data such as settling, filtration etc
Piloting may be required for novel processes, new equipment
Larger scale demontration plant my be needed to produce bulk samples, test physical behaviour of material in equipment ( solid flow in high temperature equipment)
Conventional processes testwork can be done quickly and time and cost be reliably estimated
New processes require tests in sequence and this means for an extended period. Costs are dependant on whether alternate process steps need to be tested.
PILOTING
Prove that all process steps can operate together continuously
Test at a scale to get engineering data and measure process efficiency
Can identify problems in the integrated process
Provides opportunity to test a range of construction materials
Provides product for testing and marketing
FEASIBILITY STUDY TESTWORK
Confirm viability of selected process
Provide detailed design data and info required by vendors
Continuous piloting if required to provide confidence in process
Variability on expected feed from mine plan
DEMONSTRATION PLANTS
Primarily for risk reduction
May need bulk samples of product to obtain oftake agreements
Prove new equipment
Are extremely costly
Long time to build and operate
Need deep pockets and resolve to commercialise a new process

Piloting a process at ANSTO for Arafura Resources

Palmag Evaporative crystalliser Demonstration plant at Foskor site