Allana initiates feasibility for Ethiopian potash project

Allana Potash Corp. (CVE:AAA) said Tuesday that it has initiated a feasibility study for its Ethiopian potash project.
The study, to be taken on by Ercosplan, which completed an update of the NI 43-101 compliant resources on the property in June, will investigate the potential to extract potash through open pit mining, as well as solution mining and solar evaporation.
The feasibility study is due to be completed in the second half of 2012. Ercosplan is a specialist consulting and engineering group whose core activities include project management in all aspects of the extraction and processing of industrial potash and mineral salts.
"We expect that by the end of 2011, technical and economic parameters of open pit and solution mining methods will have been examined so that the management can determine what is the optimal mining method at the initial production stage,"  said Allana president and CEO, Farhad Abasov.
"Once the mining method is determined the rest of the feasibility study will focus on the details based on that method.
"This is an important milestone for Allana since this timely start of the feasibility study will allow us to stay on track with our development plans. We look forward to working with ERCOSPLAN as we move forward to production and continue advancing our strategic talks with large fertilizer organizations."
The Dallol project is located in the northeastern region of Allana Potash's Danakil Depression in Ethiopia. Totaling approximately 150 square kilometres, the project is about 100 kilometres from the Red Sea coast, and 600 kilometres from the deep water port in Djibouti.
An updated NI 43-101 compliant resource report in late June estimated total measured and indicated resources of 673 million tonnes, with an average grade of 18.65% potash, or KCI, (the composite grade of all four potash-bearing beds including sylvinite, upper and lower carnallite and kainitite). Inferred mineral resources now stand at 596 million tonnes with an average grade of 19.96% KCI.