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NEOMETALS LTD Capital/Financing Update 2018

Jan 22, 2018

65430_rns_2018-01-22_297034e8-2d56-48f1-8b8b-6ac0a47c54f2.pdf

Capital/Financing Update

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24 January 2018

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BARRAMBIE PROJECT UPDATE

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Titanium and vanadium prices at 5‐year highs

  • Prices have rapidly increased since the closure of 89 ore processing companies in China due to environmental compliance

  • The high‐grade co‐product streams of titanium and vanadium gives Barrambie a clear competitive advantage

  • Multiple development options being evaluated

  • Beneficiation test work successfully completed with significant uplift in titanium

  • Samples received in China for evaluation

  • Mining approvals received for DSO bulk sample test pit

  • Marketing efforts are being accelerated with toll treatment operators as well as Titanium and Vanadium end users

Neometals Ltd (ASX: NMT) (“Neometals”) is pleased to provide an update regarding the Company’s 100% owned Barrambie Project in Western Australia, with multiple development options currently being evaluated.

Titanium and Vanadium market

Titanium and vanadium prices are currently trading at near 5‐year highs (see Figure 1) due to the continued increase and sustained strong demand in energy storage and pigment markets. The pricing surge is attributed to large‐scale cuts in Chinese production capacity following shutdowns for environmental compliance, as well as strong interest in vanadium’s use in energy storage applications.

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Figure 1: Prices for Vanadium Pentoxide and TiO2

Development Optionality

The large‐scale cuts in Chinese production has put Neometals in a strong position with the Barrambie Project, which is not only one of the worlds highest‐grade hard rock titanium deposits, but also hosts significant levels of high‐grade vanadium.

Within the current Mineral Resources for the Barrambie Project ( 47.2 million tonnes at 22% TiO2 and 0.63% V2O5 ), is a higher‐grade vanadium resource in the Central Zone grading 0.91% V2O5 (see ASX:NMT announcement 6 December 2013 and Appendix A).

Previously reported beneficiation studies have shown this higher‐grade zone can be upgraded to concentrate grades of 1.4% V2O5 (see ASX:RDR announcement 5 May 2009) while current test work is showing titanium concentrate grades of +36% TiO2 (see this announcement).

The high‐grade co‐product streams of titanium and vanadium gives Barrambie a clear competitive advantage and provides Neometals with significant optionality to project development.

Options for the development of Barrambie currently being evaluated are:

  1. Direct Shipping Ore (“DSO”) with a titanium focus

  2. DSO with a vanadium focus

  3. Shipping DSO to China for toll beneficiation/toll smelting to recover Ti and V slag.

  4. Production of a titanium hydrolysate semi‐finished product, vanadium pentoxide and iron oxide, through the patented Neomet hydrometallurgical process (controlled by NMT).

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Beneficiation and Pilot Hydrometallurgical Testwork

During the December Quarter, the Company prepared a bulk sample of concentrate for shipment to and testing at the Company’s pilot plant facility in Montreal, Canada.

Beneficiation test work was completed at Nagrom Mineral Processors in Kelmscott, Western Australia and produced approximately 2.7 tonnes of magnetic concentrate for pilot plant testing averaging 36.1% TiO2 and 0.73% V2O5 . Pilot test work is scheduled for the December Quarter 2018.

Mass
Fe %
SiO2%
Al2O3%
TiO2%
V2O5%
kg
Head feed
Simple Flowsheet Beneficiated Product
4,489
30
13.6
9.39
28.2
0.66
2,705
34.7
6.3
4.02
36.1
0.73
Recoveries 60%
70%
28%
26%
77%
66%

Table 1: Beneficiation Testwork results (See Appendix A for further details)

Evaluation of Direct Shipping Ore (DSO) and Mining Proposal

The Company is pleased to announce it has received applicable mining regulatory approvals for the mining of a circa 50,000 tonne bulk sample focused on the higher‐grade titanium zones of the Eastern band of the Barrambie deposit and is currently awaiting a final approval for road transport of the material.

Grade control drilling has been completed and assays are currently pending. Comprehensive cost modelling for the DSO operations has also been undertaken in conjunction with Adaman Resources Pty Ltd and other service providers.

A representative sample (diamond core) of Barrambie DSO from the planned starter pits has been received by a Chinese titanium processor and customer performance tests are to be completed on this sample.

Product marketing and promotion efforts have been stepped up with the recent appointment of former Iluka and Talison Executive, Paul Wallwork, as General Manager of Marketing and Product Development. Together with Eileen Hao, the Company’s General Manager in China, discussions with toll treatment operators as well as Titanium and Vanadium end users are being progressed. The beneficiation work completed to date will greatly assist these commercial discussions with potential customers.

Neometals Managing Director Chris Reed stated: “With the titanium and vanadium prices at near five‐year highs and the recent additions to the executive team we are accelerating technical and commercial activities for Barrambie. With the natural advantages of the Barrambie resource we are confident of finding the best development option”.

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Figure 2: Barrambie Project Plan

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

Chris Reed Managing Director COMPETENT PERSONS STATEMENT Neometals Ltd T: +61 8 9322 1182 E: [email protected]

Media

Michael Weir / Cameron Gilenko Citadel MAGNUS T: +61 8 6160 4900

COMPETENT PERSONS STATEMENT

Metallurgy

The information in this report that relates to metallurgical test work results is based on information compiled and / or reviewed by D Michael Spratt who is a Fellow of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

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D Michael Spratt is a consultant to the Company and has sufficient experience relevant to the activity which he is undertaking to be recognised as competent to compile and report such information. D Michael Spratt consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

The information in this market announcement is extracted from the reports entitled Barrambie Resource Estimate December 2013, Barrambie Prefeasibility Study August 2015, and Barrambie Vanadium project: Definitive Feasibility Study Competed announced 6 December 2013, 25 August 2015 and 5 May 2009.

Neometals Limited confirms it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information in the original market announcements relating to Barrambie mineral resources, ore reserves and feasibility studies, that all material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the Barrambie mineral resource estimate continue to apply and have not materially changed. The company confirms that the form and context in which the Competent Person’s findings are presented have not been materially modified from the original market announcement.

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APPENDIX A: SUPPORTING INFORMATION

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Figure 3: Barrambie Titanium‐Vanadium Project – location plan

JORC Mineral Resources

Barrambie Titanium Project has Mineral Resources of 47.2 million tonnes at 22% TiO2 (total Indicated and Inferred) (announcement ASX:RDR 6 December 2013).

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Category Tonnage TiO2 V2O5 Fe2O3 Al2O3 SiO2
JORC
2012 (Mt) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
Indicated 34.7 22.25 0.64 46.77 9.48 14.95
Inferred 12.5 21.99 0.58 46.51 9.32 15.40
Total 47.2 22.18 0.63 46.70 9.44 15.07
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Table 2: Barrambie Titanium Project – Mineral Resources (above 15% TiO2 block cut off)

Summary of Mineral Resources on a zone and category basis is provided in Table 3 below. Of note is the distribution of relatively higher‐grade vanadium mineralisation within the Central Zone and relatively higher‐grade titanium mineralisation within the Eastern Zone.

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Table 3: Zonation within the Barrambie Titanium Project – Mineral Resources (above 15% TiO2 block cut off) (announcement ASX:RDR 6 December 2013).

Geology

The ferrovanadium titanium (Ti‐V‐Fe) deposit occurs within the Archaean Barrambie Greenstone Belt, a narrow, NNW‐SSE trending greenstone belt in the northern Yilgarn Craton. The linear greenstone belt is about 60 km long and attains a maximum width of about 4 km. The Barrambie Sill extends over a distance of at least 25 km approximately half of which is covered by Neometal’s tenements where is varies in width from 500 m to 1700 m.

The sill is comprised of anorthositic magnetite‐bearing gabbros that intrude a sequence of metasediments, banded iron formation, metabasalts and metamorphosed felsic volcanics of the Barrambie Greenstone Belt. The metasediment unit forms the hanging‐wall to the layered sill complex.

Ti‐V‐Fe mineralisation occurs as bands of cumulate aggregations of vanadiferous magnetite (martite)‐ilmenite (leucoxene) in massive and disseminated layers and lenses. Titanium rich horizons tend to be focussed in the relatively wider band on the eastern margin of the Sill.

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Figure 4: Barrambie Geology, location of starter pits and recent metallurgical drill holes.

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Figure 5: Barrambie deposit geology

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Beneficiation Testwork

The magnetic concentrate produced by Nagrom was derived from the processing of 4,489 kilograms of diamond core from three different high‐grade starter pits, testing three different depth oxide profiles for each pit. The methodology used included crushing and grinding individual samples of drill core to 80% passing 150 microns, a single pass treatment through Low Intensity Magnetic Separation (LIMS) at field strength of 1200 Gauss, followed by a single pass through Wet High Gradient Magnetic Separation (WHGMS500) at filed strength of 10,000 Gauss.

Head Feed Head Feed
SAMPLE Mass
Fe
SiO2
Al2O3
TiO2
V2O5
kg
%
%
%
%
%
Pit 2: 1
Pit 2: 2
Pit 2: 3
Pit 2: 4
Pit 8: 1
Pit 8: 2
Pit 8: 3
Pit 8: 4
Pit 9: 1
Pit 9: 2
Pit 9: 3
Pit 9: 4
457
28.3
12.8
9.39
30.2
0.6
530
30.0
13.3
8.58
28.3
0.64
531
31.6
12.2
7.98
29.2
0.67
567
32.8
12.0
7.00
28.9
0.65
227
29.9
13.9
10.00
27.5
0.71
258
29.5
12.8
10.52
28.9
0.73
252
30.2
10.9
8.34
32
0.73
237
31.8
11.6
9.04
29.5
0.75
357
28.5
15.6
10.48
27.3
0.64
366
30.2
12.4
10.12
28.8
0.7
362
28.4
15.9
11.1
26
0.67
345
26.8
20.1
12.83
21.4
0.55
Total 4,489
30.0
13.6
9.39
28.2
0.66
Simple Flowsheet Beneficiated Product
SAMPLE Mass
Fe
SiO2
Al2O3
TiO2
V2O5
kg
%
%
%
%
%
Pit 2: 1
Pit 2: 2
Pit 2: 3
Pit 2: 4
Pit 8: 1
Pit 8: 2
Pit 8: 3
Pit 8: 4
Pit 9: 1
Pit 9: 2
Pit 9: 3
Pit 9: 4
260
33.3
5.5
3.72
38.7
0.73
336
35.3
5.0
3.01
37.7
0.75
323
34.6
5.8
3.55
37.4
0.72
349
33.9
8.2
4.59
34.6
0.64
151
34.5
7.8
5.15
33.7
0.75
172
35.3
5.4
4.41
36.1
0.79
148
34
5.5
3.91
38.1
0.78
166
37.5
4.5
3.16
36.5
0.79
234
33.1
9.0
5.5
33.9
0.71
220
36.5
4.0
3.11
37.4
0.77
232
35.2
6.3
3.8
35.5
0.77
114
34.4
10.4
5.72
29.9
0.61
Total 2,705
34.7
6.3
4.02
36.1
0.73
Recoveries Recoveries
SAMPLE Mass
Recovery
Fe
SiO2
Al2O3
TiO2
V2O5
%
%
%
%
%
%
Pit 2: 1
Pit 2: 2
Pit 2: 3
Pit 2: 4
Pit 8: 1
Pit 8: 2
Pit 8: 3
Pit 8: 4
Pit 9: 1
Pit 9: 2
Pit 9: 3
Pit 9: 4
57
67
25
23
73
69
63
75
24
22
84
74
61
67
29
27
78
65
62
64
42
40
74
61
67
77
37
34
81
70
67
80
28
28
83
72
59
66
30
28
70
63
70
83
27
24
87
73
66
76
38
34
81
73
60
73
19
18
78
66
64
79
25
22
88
74
33
42
17
15
46
36
Total 60
70
28
26
77
66

Table 4: Full Suite of Beneficiation Test Results

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