Australian company CPC Engineering has been awarded a contract by Syrah Resources Ltd for the detailed engineering and design of the Balama Graphite Project in Mozambique.
Under the contract, CPC will provide detailed engineering design services for the Balama project including process plant and associated infrastructure, procurement support, raw water supply and tailings storage pumping systems.
The flagship project hosts an Ore Reserve of 81.4 million tonnes at an average grade of 16.2% graphitic content (using a 9% cut-off grade). This reserve comprises 13.2Mt of
contained flake graphite making Balama the world’s largest Reserve of flake graphite1. It is located approximately 240km by road west of the port town of Pemba in the Cabo
Delgado province in northern Mozambique. The project site is accessible by a major sealed road which runs from Pemba to approximately 45km from the project site.
The processing plant and related infrastructure will produce a filtered graphite concentrate at a production rate of 2Mtpa. When in full production, Syrah will export approximately 380,000 tonnes of concentrate per year grading 95% graphitic content through the deep water container port of Nacala1.
The processing plant will use proven technology consisting of crushing and screening, grinding, flotation, filtration and drying, classification and screening and bagging.
CPC Engineering Chief Executive Officer Glen Weir commented: “We are delighted to have been appointed for detailed design and engineering services on this major project.
“Balama hosts the largest graphite ore reserve in the world and is likely to be the premier mine of its kind. This contract continues to demonstrate the company’s emerging achievements in the minerals resource sector and the ongoing relationship with Syrah at its flagship project,” Mr Weir added.
Today’s announcement follows Syrah’s appointment of CPC to complete Front End Engineering Design (“FEED”) on the Balama project in June this year.
CPC is currently working on a Definitive Feasibility Study for Oceana Gold’s Macreas Gold/Tungsten
project in New Zealand, a Definitive Feasibility Study for Newmont’s Tanami Gold Expansion Project in the Northern Territory and has recently completed the design of a 4Mtpa Nickel plant for First Quantum Minerals in Zambia.
