Vancouver, B.C., Canada – April 18, 2019 – Deep-South Resources Inc. (“Deep- South” or “the Company“) (TSX-V: DSM) announces that Mintek has commenced its metallurgical test work on stockpile material from the Haib Copper Project in Namibia. The test work program is managed by METS Engineering of Australia.
Deep-South has provided Mintek with about 1.8 tons of ore sample from a large stockpile that was extracted during a previous sampling campaign. The sample contains chalcopyrite as the main copper mineral. The aim of the program is to test the amenability of the ore to microbially-assisted heap leaching. The test work will produce data for an eventual commercial pilot heap leach campaign.
Since 2003 heap leaching technologies have evolved substantially. Codelco has successfully used microbially-assisted heap leaching of copper sulfide ore containing chalcopyrite since 2014 at their Radomiro Tomic mine in Chile. Other operations in Chile have also piloted microbial-assisted heap leaching of chalcopyrite ores.
The program will also focus on testing the amenability of High Pressure Grinding Rolls (HPGRs) and test the acid consumption of the heap leaching process.
Test work summary:
The bulk head sample will be crushed down to -12.5 mm with a jaw crusher. The jaw crusher product will then be sub-sampled, and crushed with an HPGR to -5 mm, -3.35 mm and -2 mm, respectively. Sub-samples from each crush size will be removed for curing acid optimisation tests, assay-by-size (4 size classes), geomechanical tests and column leach tests. Additional head sample will be milled to 80% passing 75 μm for chemical head assay by ICP-OES, sequential Cu (acid-soluble, cyanide-soluble and residual copper). Acid consumption (iso-pH) tests and batch stirred tank amenability tests will be performed on the head sample. Mineralogy (XRD and SEM) will be performed on the -2 mm head sample. The column leaching test will be carried out at a temperature of 60 °C for a total duration of 200 days. However, interim results will be available weekly.
About Mintek:
Mintek is South Africa’s national mineral research organisation established in 1934 to assist in ensuring sustainable growth in the minerals and metal industries through research, development & innovation (RDI).
The organisation has grown over the years into an internationally competitive, respected research and development centre of metallurgical and mineral processing technologies. Mintek’s Biotechnology Division has been involved in the development of tank and heap bioleaching technologies for over 30 years. Mintek also specializes in hydrometallurgy, including leaching, precipitation, solvent extraction and electrowinning. You can visit Mintek at : https://www.mintek.co.za
About METS :
Established in 1988, Mineral Engineering Technical Services provides a range of services in the fields of Minerals Processing, Hydrometallurgy and Pyrometallurgy. METS is the engineering company that produced Deep-South’s Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) disclosed on February 26, 2018. You can visit METS at : https://www.metsengineering.com
About Deep-South Resources Inc.
Deep-South Resources Inc. is a mineral exploration company largely held by Namibian shareholders and Management with 17% and Teck Resources Ltd with 28% of Deep-South share capital. Deep-South currently holds 100% of the Haib Copper project in Namibia, one of the largest copper porphyry deposits in Africa. Deep-South’s growth strategy is to focus on the exploration and development of quality assets, in significant mineralized zones, close to infrastructure, in stable countries.
This press release contains certain “forward-looking statements,” as identified in Deep- South’s periodic filings with Canadian Securities Regulators that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
More information is available by contacting Pierre Léveillé, President & CEO at
+1-819-340-0140, email at: info@koryxcopper.com
or
Paradox Public Relations at +1-514-341-0408.
