Last Updated – April 28, 2024 (added recent LinkedIn posts from 25 & 27 April)
Doubleview Gold
Tracking Scandium – On the Path to the Largest Scandium Deposit with the Most Unique, Most Desirable & Lowest-Cost Extraction Process in the World!
Despite the fact that final metallurgical testing is still on-going and better results are anticipated, Doubleview Gold’s scandium (Sc) extraction process is said to be the most unique, the lowest cost and revolutionary for the scandium industry.
Although the scandium market is small and its advantages have been heavily proven in the real world, the main restraint from mass usage is the current high price of the metal due to its high extraction cost.
In 2022, Rio Tinto became the first North American scandium producer after spending very significant amounts of money to develop an extraction process that works on its tailings. Although it wants to become a global scandium supplier, it currently doesn’t seem to have the reserves to remain a global supplier if the scandium market grows significantly and is used in the transportation industry to reduce the weight of electric vehicles. Reducing weight increases range and consequently, further reduces their carbon emission stemming from the electrical grid to charge them. Rio Tinto extracts scandium from the waste streams of titanium dioxide production and the final product is scandium oxide.
Although little is publicly known about Rio Tinto’s extraction process, I believe Doubleview Gold’s scandium extraction process is superior due to what our world renowned metallurgist, who is up-to-date on the scandium market, has been saying about it.
Doubleview Gold’s revolutionary extraction process and its huge deposit which seems to be the largest scandium source in the world could supply the whole scandium market with the cheaper scandium prices it requires to allow mass usage of it.
Typical Scandium Extraction Process
(Not Doubleview Gold’s Extraction Process)
- Sc is typically extracted from laterite ore
- Typical Sc deposits are small (smaller economies of scale)
- Sc is difficult to extract & recover
- Sc extraction from laterite ore typically requires High Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL) which also uses high temperatures. HPAL uses very large pressure cookers.
- HPAL drastically increases the capital expenditures (CAPEX) required to put a deposit into production, has additional maintenance costs, is associated with environmental concerns and is more dangerous.
- Mining companies usually only produce a saleable Sc oxide product due to the much higher costs to produce the other Sc products
- Sc extraction costs are high due to HPAL (higher CAPEX, higher operating costs, higher maintenance costs, etc.)
Doubleview Gold
General Info on Scandium & Extraction Process
- Sc is a by-product of tailings which is simply waste rock
- Sc is found consistently throughout the deposit which has one of the largest 3D IP footprints in North America measuring 2.7 km x 3.7 km & has a 3D IP identified tonnage of ~4 BILLION tons
- Process is unique to the deposit’s special mineralogy which means it most likely won’t work on other deposits. This means a major mining company wanting the extraction process also needs the deposit as well (i.e. they need to buy the whole company)
- World renowned metallurgist (Andrew Carter) said he believes it has the most unique chemistry in its rocks that sets it apart (YouTube video 16 March)
- CEO talking about what Andrew Carter said. Andrew Carter is up to date on everything in the Sc world. “What I see if it’s true, you are sitting on the largest Sc deposit in the world -unbelievable”- Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- CEO – “this is the most unique opportunity in the world I would say & if we are right we are sitting on one of the best deposits in the world & definitely NA” – YouTube Video 16 March
- CEO – “I believe this is going to revolutionize the Sc usage & Sc in NA for everyone” – YouTube video 16 March
- CEO- we are “the only Sc deposit announced that exists” (only knows of 1 small Sc deposit in Quebec (Canada) that uses chloroquine & supposedly only has 3% recovery- YouTube video 16 March
Doubleview Gold
Extraction Process Results & Details
(in order from oldest to newest)
- 99.5% of the Sc reported to the flotation tailings – 09 Aug 22 NR
- 89% Sc extraction from metallurgical tests on flotation tailings- 24 Oct 22 NR
- “Recovering scandium from tailings in addition to copper, cobalt and gold recovery in concentrates is significant as it potentially provides another commercially saleable product with limited additional costs”- 24 Oct 22 NR
- “Several recovery processes have been identified to produce a range of potential scandium products” (i.e. different forms of scandium commercial saleable products) – 24 Oct 22 NR
- 56% Sc recovery on 1st attempt at recovering Sc in tailings (further testing is attempting to optimize/increase the recovery rate & the company has publicly said that 80-90% is ultimately achievable). Sc was recovered as a phosphate precipitate. Sc phosphate currently trades for ~$35/g (1 gram lot) & for comparison gold currently trades for ~$60/g – 6 Feb 22 NR 22 Feb 22 NR & Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- Seems to be the 1st to extract Sc from copper ore (typically from laterite ore)
- Scandium is easy to extract & easy to recover due to its unique mineralogy (typically difficult to extract & recover)- Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- Claimed to be the only extraction process that doesn’t require high pressure – YouTube video 16 March & Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- Uses atmospheric pressure & low temperatures (no HPAL & no high temperatures due to unique mineralogy) – YouTube video 16 March & Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- Less environmental concerns & less dangerous (no HPAL) – Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- Lowest cost to extract- lower CAPEX requirements & a lot less energy/electricity (no HPAL). CEO- “We have the opportunity to have low cost scandium in North America……very cost effective” & “we will have a report showing what the cost figure is to do do this metallurgy, to show to the world that this is the cheapest way of producing scandium” – Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March
- Proprietary Metallurgical Testwork demonstrates recovery of scandium into a secondary phosphate product, with a total scandium recovery greater than 90% from the Hat Deposit 26 Sept 2023 NR – important to note that this was done at atmospheric room pressure and low temperatures!
News Release Quotes on the Scandium Extraction Process
CEO/President:
25 Oct 2022 News Release:
“I am specifically proud of the metallurgical team and laboratory scientists for achieving exceptional results in the recovery of scandium, now recognized in North American as an essential mineral. Initial scandium recovery rates of 89% from flotation tailings with the anticipation of higher recoveries with optimization is extremely encouraging. Scandium is present and has been assayed throughout the deposit and will be evaluated in upcoming resource calculations. Recovering scandium from tailings in addition to copper, cobalt and gold recovery in concentrates is significant as it potentially provides another commercially saleable product with limited additional costs. The Company recently announced it commissioned a maiden resource estimate for the HAT Deposit. The addition of scandium to a polymetallic resource which includes gold, copper, cobalt, silver and PGE could distinguish the HAT Deposit as a world class resource.”
07 Feb 2023 News Release:
“The discovery of a deposit with potential deliverables of scandium, cobalt, copper, and gold by Doubleview is a significant achievement for the company, its shareholders, and North America as a whole. Of particular significance is the potential for scandium, as the USA imports 100% of its scandium consumption. This landmark discovery has the potential to expand the use of scandium in a variety of applications, one of which is its ability to enhance the energy capacity, stability, and safety of nickel-metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries commonly used in electric vehicles and consumer electronics.” “The integration of Scandium into aluminum alloys can lead to a stronger and lighter material than steel, which is essential for the automobile and aerospace industries. As the demand for energy-efficient vehicles continues to grow, the use of scandium aluminium alloy, with high percentages of scandium, provides a solution to the challenge of heavy energy consumption and limited infrastructure capacity. The shift towards ever lighter materials will require adoption by global industry of new techniques and materials.” “The discovery of this deposit has the potential to revolutionize various industries and provides a new opportunity for the use of scandium. This discovery has the potential to create a significant impact on the industry.”
26 Sept 2023 News Release:
“Doubleview, under the guidance of Mr. Andrew Carter, his metallurgical team at Tetra Tech and their innovative approach, has achieved a significant milestone that positions the Company uniquely on the global stage for Cobalt and Scandium. Doubleview believes it has developed the HAT Deposit into an important copper, cobalt, and scandium deposit. This achievement places the Company at the forefront of the critical metals industry on a global scale.”
Andrew Carter (World Renowned Top Metallurgist):
25 Oct 2022 News Release:
“The mode of occurrence of scandium in Hat Deposit mineralized material is typical and scandium responds predictably to conventional approaches to extraction, furthermore, recovery of scandium from sulphate solution is not expected to present any undue difficulty.”
22 Feb 2023 News Release:
“Even at moderate recoveries, the HAT deposit has the potential to meet international demand for scandium for the foreseeable future. As scandium is a by-product of a waste stream, recovery is not the fundamental driver, cost is. If it can be demonstrated that scandium can be recovered at an acceptable cost, then scandium has the potential to add significant value to the HAT deposit. A techno-economic evaluation for the production of scandium as a by-product of HAT copper-gold
production will be evaluated on conclusion of the test work phase.”
“Reported recovery rates for other projects, either in planning or under development, are 76.2% at the Flemington Project on the low end, and 88.0% at the Syerston Project on the upper end. This positions the potential for Doubleview’s HAT deposit favourably as it is targeting an 80-90% recovery rate, however it is noted that other scandium projects currently under consideration are treating laterites.
Quotes from Other Sources
Refer to Doubleview Gold’s disclaimer as the following statements from the CEO/President contain some forward-looking information.
CEO/President:
Here are some important forward-looking quotes/statements from Doubleview Gold’s CEO & President which help provide possible clues (refer to Doubeview Gold’s disclaimer):
Posted on LinkedIn on 27 April, 2024 (click on image below for the link):
Replies to the post above (the comment from Mike Rowsome refers to the Scandium extraction process) :
Posted on LinkedIn on 25 April, 2024 (click on image below for the link):
- Farshad Shirvani said “Potentially one of the largest critical metals deposits in North America” – Oct 2023 Link
- Farshad Shirvani said “Doubleview potentially has the largest Scandium deposit in the world with unsurpassable mineral recovery method and environmentally safe that comes with many other North American Critical Metals, Copper, Cobalt and plus Gold” – Oct 2023 Link
- Farshad Shirvani (CEO/President) said he is working on proving that Doubleview Gold potentially has the largest critical mineral discovery in Canada. If successful, he anticipates the governments of US and Canada will look at the company (both governments have been focusing on establishing a domestic critical metals supply chain for the Green Energy Transition) Link
- Farshad Shirvani (CEO/President) said the deposit could potentially be one of the most valuable deposits in Canada (read that again and think about what kind of valuation it would receive if this occurs) Link
- “Recovering scandium from tailings in addition to copper, cobalt and gold recovery in concentrates is significant as it potentially provides another commercially saleable product with limited additional costs” – CEO/President 24 Oct 22 NR (link)
- “We have the opportunity to have low cost scandium in North America……very cost effective” & “we will have a report showing what the cost figure is to do do this metallurgy, to show to the world that this is the cheapest way of producing scandium” – CEO/President Pre-PDAC Pres 03 March (video link)
- “It will be proven by the end of this year, all of a sudden to everyone, that this is the most unique deposit in the world…..I’m not saying in Canada or the United States….the most unique one in the world & you will see that how we’re going to expose it to the world to see it” – CEO/President 27 March 2023 YouTube Video (link)
What’s Possibly Next for Metallurgical Tests
Scandium:
- The Metallurgical testwork is now advancing to the next level of producing a final scandium product 26 Sept 2023 NR
- 80%-90% Sc recovery -“Expectations are that scandium recoveries in the range of 80% to 90% will ultimately be achievable with further process development and optimisation. Production of a phosphate lends itself to the solution purification scheme currently under test. Once recovered, scandium can be converted to other forms. Alternative treatment strategies are also being considered” – 22 Feb 22 NR (90%+ has been achieved in 26 Sept NR)
- Other Sc versions such as scandium fluoride which is said to be worth about the same as gold on a per gram basis (Sc Fl ~$62/g)
- Economic assessment of the Sc extraction process
Other Metals:
- Optimization of metal recoveries
- Potential recovery of Rhodium, Ruthenium, Iridium & Osmium- “Nickel sulphide fusion and INAA analysis on the test work composite sample and selected flotation products also indicated the presence of Rhodium (Rh), Ruthenium (Ru), Iridium (Ir) and Osmium (Os) at elevated levels. Further analysis of these metals will be undertaken on selected samples during planned test work programs.” – 22 Jul 21 NR
- “The potential for the recovery of additional metallic elements including Palladium and Nickel” – 08 Mar 21 NR
Other Metals
(Metallurgical Tests)
09 Aug 22– “A locked cycle test achieved a concentrate copper grade of 10.6% with 93.2% copper recovery at a mass pull of 1.7%. Gold grades varied between 5.4g Au/t and 9.3g Au/t with minimal losses to tails. Previously recoveries of 86% copper and 87% gold were achieved at grades as high as 27% Cu and 12 g Au/t. Cobalt recovery at 35% was lower than the 74% achieved in earlier tests owing to the low pyrite content of the current suite of samples” –09 Aug 21 NR
22 Jul 21– “Nickel sulphide fusion and INAA analysis on the test work composite sample and selected flotation products also indicated the presence of Rhodium (Rh), Ruthenium (Ru), Iridium (Ir) and Osmium (Os) at elevated levels. Further analysis of these metals will be undertaken on selected samples during planned test work programs.” – 22 Jul 21 NR
10 May 21– Gold & copper deemed recoverable with metallurgical tests- 10 May 21 NR
10 May 21– “Significant Cobalt Recovery a Major Upgrade at the Hat Copper-Gold-Cobalt Deposit in the Golden Triangle” – 10 May 21 NR
8 Mar 21- “Cobalt Confirmed Recoverable in Preliminary Metallurgy Tests” – 8 Mar 21 NR
The Scandium Green Energy Transition Opportunity
For the full article, please see the following link: The Scandium Green Energy Transition Opportunity
Info on the Company & World Renowned Top Metallurgist Overseeing the Metallurgical Tests
Andrew Carter (Technical Director, Mining & Minerals, Tetra Tech) has been supervising/guiding the metallurgical tests for ~2.5 yrs & has been signing off on Doubleview Gold’s news releases.
Tetra Tech market cap ~US$7 BILLION (as of March 2023)
Andrew Carter & his extensive background (link):
He is also one of 4 members of the Institute of Materials,Minerals and Mining which is one of six participating organisations of The Pan European Reserves and Resources Reporting Committee (PERC).
PERC Standard Members (link)
PERC is a constituent member of the Committee For Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO) and is recognised by CRIRSCO as the National Reporting Organisation (NRO) for the Europe Region. As such, PERC is the European equivalent of JORC in Australasia, SAMREC in South Africa, and the other CRIRSCO regional member organisations. PERC, as a member of CRIRSCO, has an international forum that enables it to ensure consistency of its reporting standards in an international setting, as well as contributing to the development of good practice in international reporting.
Other Important Non-Scandium Items
Commissioning of Ore Sorting Assessment:
26 April 2022 – Doubleview Announces Commissioning of Ore Sorting Assessments (link)
Doubleview President and CEO, Mr. Farshad Shirvani stated “Lowering the cutoff grade in a resource estimate could significantly increase the quality of the HAT Deposit. Utilizing ore sorting technology could result in an increased Net Present Value (“NPV”) and Internal Rate of Return (“IRR”) if the deposit potentially advances to the prefeasibility stage and beyond.”
The first of two assessments will test the economic potential of sensor-based particle sorting with the objective to dramatically increase a future mill grade.
The second assessment will look at the potential to use bulk sorting technologies to provide moderate increases to future mill grades at exceptionally low CAPEX and OPEX costs.
ABH Project Manager Mr. Hilscher commented “Based on current mineralogy, utilizing both ore sorting methods could have a significant benefit to the Hat Deposit’s NPV and IRR.”
ABT Engineering is also the company that has been hied to do the company’s Maiden NI 43-101 Resource Estimate.
Brent Hilscher- Vice President Mineral Processing ABH Engineering (Mining)
LinkedIn profile (link)
ABH Engineering info on Brent Hilscher (link)
“Brent Hilscher has over 20 years experience in mining and mineral processing. He has commissioned, operated, and supervised mineral processing plants. He has published papers, patented technologies, and been a speaker at over a dozen conferences and universities in Canada and around the world.
Brent has led design and construction projects for Teck, Goldcorp, New Gold, Barrick, Xstrata, Agnico Eagle, and many others. He won the National CMP Bill Moore Award for technical excellence in 2013, and served as an officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. Because of his technical reputation Brent has been consulted as an advisor for the World Bank, United Nations, Government of Canada, and NASA mining research projects. He has volunteered as an executive for both the CIM and the CMP.” – from ABH Engineering website
Metal Recovery Rates
IMPORTANT – As of 26 Sept, 2023, the Scandium recovery rate is now ~90%! .
The following are the established prices (not the current metal rices) used for Copper Equivalent calculations (Cu Eq):