Hunter Region Branch: 10th Annual Jameson Distinguished Lecture 2023

Our 10th annual Jameson Lecture was held in Newcastle, as a hybrid event (both in-person and online) on Thursday 19 October. We were pleased to welcome Professor Jameson as he attended on the night.

The Topic “Metallurgy is Central to the Development of a Critical Minerals Project” was presented by Dr Andrew Tong, Executive Manager, Cobalt Blue Holdings.

Dr. Tong explained the place of cobalt in the critical minerals market, including that 67% of cobalt is used in the construction of batteries. Currently, cobalt supply is largely produced as a byproduct of copper and nickel mining.

Typically, it is small companies that hold critical minerals deposits. Consequently, they must do robust feasibility studies, particularly on metallurgical testing, in order to attract capital to develop a project.

Cobalt Blue is currently working on the development of a deposit where cobalt is locked inside pyrite crystal lattice. The talk examined the pitfalls and successes of developing the cobalt project located close to Broken Hill. The necessary role of sound metallurgical testing right through to demonstration plant was emphasised, to underpin securing financial interest and credibility in the project.

After open cut mining, a complex processing plant is proposed requiring high recovery of pyrite, followed by calcining and leaching to produce high purity products.

Dr Tong is a metallurgist with over 20 year's experience with project development in mining and processing. He has a BSc (Hons) and PhD from the University of Sydney. He has held senior management and corporate roles including CEO and board roles for Compass/NT Resources, Goldsmith Resources and Australia Gold. He is an inventor and holds several patents for processing minerals. Andrew is a member of the AusIMM.

Thanks go to committee member Kim Wright for organising this and all previous Jameson lectures.