Australian Vanadium Appoints Early Contractors As It Progresses Towards Development And Construction
Australian Vanadium Ltd (ASX:AVL) has appointed Primero Group and GR Engineering Services to undertake Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) services for the Australian Vanadium Project crushing, milling and beneficiation plant (CMB) Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) package.
This ECI process will allow AVL and the contractors to build key relationships by collaborating in design development, optimising risk allocation and preparation of EPC pricing. It will run until Q2 2023, with the final deliverable being an EPC tender proposal from each company.
The final preferred EPC contractor will be notified within the same quarter.
A key step forward
“Appointing Primero and GR Engineering in this ECI role is a key step forward for the project as we progress towards development and construction,” AVL managing director, Vincent Algar said.
“These agreements are indicative of the level of confidence we have in progressing towards execution and will be pivotal in setting the foundations of key partnerships which are essential in ensuring the success of the project.”
As with Algar, Primero and GR Engineering sees the ECI process as a critical part of being execution ready once a final investment decision is made.
About the project
The Australian Vanadium Project is one of the most advanced vanadium projects being developed globally, with 239 million tonnes at 0.73% vanadium pentoxide (V2O5), containing a high-grade zone of 95.6 million tonnes at 1.07% V2O5.
It has an ore reserve of 30.9 million tonnes at 1.09% V2O5 comprising a proved reserve of 5 million tonnes at 1.11% V2O5 and a probable reserve of 20.4 million tonnes at 1.07% V2O5, reported in compliance with the JORC Code 2012.
It is based on a high-grade V-Ti-Fe mineral resource in the Murchison Province of Western Australia, about 43 kilometres south of the mining town of Meekatharra and 740 kilometres northeast of Perth.
Open cut mining and a CMB will be located at the mine site and a vanadium pentoxide processing plant will be near the port city of Geraldton.
The project will produce a vanadium concentrate at the resource site and complete production of high-purity vanadium for the steel, titanium master alloy and energy storage markets, as well as an iron titanium (FeTi) coproduct for export through Geraldton, at its planned processing plant.
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