Mindax to fast-track DSO iron production in 2013 at Mt Forrest

Mindax (ASX: MDX) has a production strategy in-place at the Mt Forrest iron project where direct shipping ore production in the second half of 2013 will bring forward cashflows which can then be used to help fund the magnetite production in 2015.

Importantly for Mindax - infrastructure access and complimentary tenure to the mining leases are being aligned, with a major resource to delineation and metallurgical testing program to kick off in August.

Greg Bromley, managing director, told Proactive Investors today that third party infrastructure providers (both established and new to the region) are showing a keen interest to build port, power and rail facilities because they see an unusually high number of potential miners with resource assets within a few kilometres of Mt Forrest.

"This will greatly reduce Capex."

The direct shipping ore component is a regolith mag-hematite resource with a JORC Inferred and Indicated at 19 million tonnes at 42.3% iron.

Mindax has an exploration target of 35 to 50 million tonnes of regolith iron material at a grade of 42% to 58% iron, which has been established from the enhanced geological understanding at Mt Forrest.

First quarter drilling results confirmed 50% iron primary magnetite mineralisation.

The primary magnetite resource is a JORC Inferred and Indicated at 1.43 billion tonnes at 31.5% iron.

Mindax has analysed the final sets of drilling data from earlier in the year which continue to demonstrate high primary grades to 53.7% and good recoveries at a 80P40 micron grind.

The company said the limited coarser grind (80P150 micron) work is also very positive with selected high Fe/low Si concentrate weight recoveries of >40%, Fe > 70% and Si < 3%.

The significance for Mindax is the deeper drill intercepts indicate important targets for direct shipping ore materials in the overlying regolith profile.

Surface sampling of the up dip projections of this high grade primary material is indicating mixed hematite-magnetite material at surface, with previous surface sampling focused more on the mapped hematite goethite mineralisation and excluded magnetite units.

Adding to the potential of the project, and in addition to the direct shipping ore, further mapping of hematite-goethite mineralisation has been completed at Currawong, Bulga and Paradise Bore - with these targets having received limited or no drilling at all to date.

Yilgarn Iron Producers Association

Bromley is also the chairman of The Yilgarn Iron Producers Association Incorporated (YIPA Inc), which currently has 11 iron ore producers and explorers from the Yilgarn Iron Province as members.

Highlighting the potential of the area - the Yilgarn is already an established iron producer approaching 12 million tonnes per annum of direct shipping ore being exported, and a potential aggregate iron endowment of over 15 billion tonnes of potentially beneficiable magnetite and one billion tonnes of direct shipping ore hematite ores.

Originally published at: http://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/18101/mindax-to-fast-track-dso-iron-production-in-2013-at-mt-forrest--18101.html