Page 15 - Bauxite Resources Annual Report 2013

Apr-11
0
50
100
150
200
250
300 Fortuna upgrade
Fortuna resource and
Felicitas upgrade
Felicitas interim upgrade
Ceres
Felicitas
Million Tonnes
Bauxite resource growth chart
May-11Jun-11Jul-11Aug-11Sep-11Oct-11Nov-11Dec-11Jan-12Feb-12Mar-12Apr-12May-12Jun-12Jul-12Aug-12Sep-12Oct-12Nov-12Dec-12Jan-13Feb-13Mar-13Apr-13May-13Jun-13Jul-13Aug-13
d Measure
Indicated
Inferred
EXPLORATION
During the 12 months to 30 June 2013 the Company and its
joint venture partners has completed drilling programs on high
priority targets to rapidly delineate bauxite mineralisation and
build a significant resource base.
A total of 9,950 vacuum drill holes were drilled during the
year for 52,411m, with a further 19 diamond drill core holes
completed for 152m. Exploration success has resulted in
combined JORC resource estimates at June 2013 of 243.7Mt
@ 39.7% total alumina, 30.1% available alumina and 2.4%
reactive silica. (refer Mineral Resources Table 1 on page 17
for the current combined mineral resources).
The Company is well positioned to capitalise from its portfolio
of high quality bauxite resources, and is exploring a range of
domestic and export opportunities.
An Exceptional Period of Resource Growth
The Company has experienced strong growth in total mineral
resources with bauxite resources of BRL and its joint venture
partners increased to 243.7Mt during the financial year. This
represents an increase of 96% over the previous year. BRL
considers the increase achieved to be an excellent result that
significantly improves the opportunity for the Company and its
joint venture partners to develop a bauxite mining operation in
the south west of Western Australia.
Subsequent to year end the Fortuna resource increased from
26.8 million tonnes to 39.5 million tonnes through further
drilling and reinterpretation of existing resources. Global
resources now stand at 256.4Mt. Critically, the Company
has moved a portion of known resources into the Measured
Mineral Resource category.
Maintaining a Portfolio of High Quality Bauxite
Resources
The Company remains committed to the identification and
development of high quality bauxite resources, with focus
during the year on two key projects, namely Fortuna and
Felicitas. Both resources, located in the northern Darling
Range, display low reactive silica and very high available
alumina to reactive silica ratios, making them extremely
attractive for refining. The majority of alumina present is
the tri-hydrate mineral gibbsite. Alumina from these types
of deposits is readily extracted at lower temperatures than
mono-hydrate alumina found in other bauxite regions, and
as such refining costs are significantly reduced. For this reason
the Darling Range of Western Australia remains the largest
alumina producing region in the world. BRL resources are on
large private land holdings (cleared farmland), with good road
and rail infrastructure nearby. The bauxite is shallow, typically
with less than 2m of loose overburden, requiring limited pre-
stripping. All attributes indicate potential for the Company’s
projects to support long life, low cost bauxite production.
Note: Refer Table 1 for resource details and announcements
Annual Report 2013 Bauxite Resources 13