Australian Hill End soon to release maiden resource estimate of its high purity alumina project

According to an independent news source, Hill End Gold Limited of Australia is close to releasing a maiden estimate of resource for its high-purity alumina project at Yendon, in the Central Highlands of Victoria.

The ASX-listed mineral exploration company is 100 per cent stakeholder of the Pure Alumina Pty Ltd High Purity Alumina (HPA) Project on tenements at nearby Lal and Pittong. The site is known for its rich kaolin deposits.

High purity alumina demand is growing exponentially all over the world. The high-value material fetches $US25-$US40 per kg depending on the purity level and the specific area of application. The specialized mineral is used in lithium-ion batteries, LED lighting solutions, and scratch-resistant sapphire glasses of smartphone screen and lenses.

With increasing exposure to a number of high-growth end user industries, HPA market is forecasted to grow at 15-20 per cent compound annual growth rate globally.

Yendon in Ballarat has long been known as a region having rich deposits of kaolin- an aluminuous clay type that can be processed into high purity alumina. Hill End’s soon-to-be-released resource estimate is expected to confirm a “quality resource” that can sustain an HPA project for at least ten years from starting of operations.

The initial metallurgical test works have yielded highly positive results that “de risk” the project to a large extent.  

Given the current size of global HPA market, the high purity alumina project is not going to be resource-constraints, industry experts believe.