Decades of chrysotile asbestos mining in Quebec have generated millions of tonnes of serpentine tailings. These tailings have an average metallic magnesium content of 25% and are already milled and ready for processing. Alliance Magnesium owns more than 100 million tonnes of raw material, which will last for over 100 years.
Characterization
Alliance Magnesium carried out the characterization of the tailings piles it owns to properly identify their potential.
The feasibility study used NI 43-101 standards and included a complete drilling program, providing a clear and accurate picture of the deposit’s characteristics while validating the extraction method for producing magnesium.
This study showed the following:
- The total tailings deposit is estimated at over 100 million tonnes of serpentine.
- The tailings are extremely homogeneous and do not contain any other type of minerals or tailings.
- The mineral has an average content of 38.3% MgO, which comes out to about 25% metallic magnesium.
- The deposit also contains silica, nickel and cobalt, which have substantial economic potential.
- Ore extraction requires no complex mining operations and can be carried out with minimal material handling.
- Depending on the amount of primary magnesium produced, Alliance Magnesium can guarantee hundreds of years of manufacturing using its raw material.
| Ressources | Tonnes | MgO | SiO2 | Al2O3 | Fe2O3 | CaO | Na2O | K2O | TiO2 | P2O5 | MnO | Cr2O3 | V2O5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 47 936 297 | 38,29% | 38,81% | 1,31% | 7,75% | 0,57% | 0,12% | 0,16% | 0,04% | 0,01% | 0,10% | 0,40% | 0,01% |
Source : NI43-101, Alliance Magnésium 2019
All standards and regulations in force are respected by the Alliance Magnesium team in order to ensure the health and safety of workers and the population.
Did you know?
It takes about 5.6 tonnes of serpentine to produce 1 tonne of magnesium metal. For example, 100 million tonnes of raw material could produce 35,000 tonnes annually and last 571 years.