Surefire Resources explores high purity aluminium oxide production from Victory Bore vanadium project

Apr 14, 2023

Surefire Resources (ASX: SRN) has appointed minerals science company Lava Blue to explore the value-add potential of high purity aluminium oxide production from its flagship Victory Bore vanadium project in Western Australia.

Victory Bore contains strongly elevated aluminium oxide in waste rock surrounding the main resource, with grades up to 31.4%.

It could provide Surefire with an "exceptional feedstock" for high value high purity alumina (HPA) production, targeting 4N-HPA (or more than 99.99% pure).

Lava Blue will use samples of the aluminium oxide for laboratory test work to demonstrate a pathway to production.

Surefire is pursuing the production of aluminium oxide in parallel with high purity vanadium for the emerging vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) sector.

HPA products can currently command a market price of up to $60 per kilogram, or up to $60,000 per tonne.

Surefire managing director Paul Burton said the the company was keen to maximise production opportunities at Victory Bore.

"The extensive high grades of aluminium oxide in waste rock make Victory Bore stand out from other vanadium resources," he said.

"If the test work is successful, we could potentially add significant value to this asset and further enhance it as one the world's largest and richest undeveloped vanadium resources."

Surefire is progressing the Victory Bore project at a time when global markets are experiencing increased vanadium demand.

Earlier this month, the company upgraded the project's JORC resources and exploration target with figures that are believed to "set it apart" from other potential vanadium resources in Australia.

An independent assessment calculated the exploration target to be between 682 million tonnes and 1,190Mt grading up to 0.43% vanadium oxide.

Within the JORC estimate is a measured resource of 16.8Mt at 0.42% vanadium oxide, an indicated 70.3Mt at 0.40% vanadium oxide and an inferred 147.7Mt at 0.38% vanadium oxide.

It also contains an inferred resource at the Unaly Hill prospect of 86.2Mt at 0.42% vanadium oxide.

Surefire is currently progressing a pre-feasibility study for Victory Bore.

4N-HPA is used predominantly for sapphire glass production, which is an essential material for LED production.

The LED market is set to outstrip its estimated compound annual growth rate of 11% once a global ban on the manufacture of compact fluorescent light bulbs takes effect in November.

An additional proposed ban on the manufacture of liner fluorescent tubes is expected to be decided before November 2025.

In recent years, HPA has been more widely adopted for use in ceramic-coated separators in lithium-ion batteries.

In 2022, global total demand for HPA was estimated at around 80,000t per annum and this figure is expected to jump by around 200,000tpa before the end of the decade.

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