Business
Fortune Minerals announces successful pilot plant tests for production of cobalt sulphate from NICO
Battery-grade product proven that sells for premium and lowers operating costs Iss...
About this update from Fortune Minerals Limited
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\n\n\nBattery-grade product proven that sells for premium and lowers operating\n costs \n\n\nIssued Capital: 117,076,976\n\n\n\n\n\nLONDON, ON, May 30, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX-FT) (OTCQX-FTMDF) (\"Fortune\" or the \"Company\") (www.fortuneminerals.com) is pleased to\n announce successful results of pilot plant tests conducted at SGS\n Lakefield Research Limited (\"SGS Lakefield\") proving that a\n battery-grade cobalt sulphate product used to make high performance\n lithium ion and nickel metal hydride rechargeable batteries can be\n produced from the Company's NICO gold-cobalt-bismuth-copper project. \n These batteries are used in portable electronic devices, such as\n cellular telephones and computers as well as electric and\n hybrid-electric cars and are responsible for the greatest increase in\n the demand for cobalt.  Battery-grade cobalt sulphate can be produced\n at a lower operating cost than the 99.9% high-grade cobalt cathode that\n can also be generated from the NICO project and sells for a 15 to 25%\n premium price over metal.\n\n\nIn light of the results from the pilot plant tests, the Company believes\n that it is well-positioned to satisfy the needs of electronics\n companies and other end users of cobalt sulphate who require reliable\n sources of cobalt that are less vulnerable to supply disruptions from\n resource nationalism and political instability.  More than 50% of world\n cobalt production is currently sourced from the Democratic Republic of\n the Congo.  NICO is poised to become a reliable Canadian-based cobalt\n supplier with 15% of global bismuth reserves, and a significant gold\n co-product as a counter cyclical hedge.  Cobalt sulphate is the\n preferred product by many battery manufacturers that would otherwise\n need to re-process metals to produce the sulphate that Fortune can\n produce directly from solution.\n\n\nSGS Lakefield conducted the cobalt sulphate pilot plant in March and\n April, 2012 at their facilities in Lakefield Ontario.  Fortune already\n had 2000 litres of cobalt pregnant solution that had been processed by\n acid pressure leach in an earlier autoclave pilot plant test and was\n used to conduct the current test.  Notably, most of the flow sheet that\n Fortune has already piloted and engineered to produce a 99.9% co...