ENERGY MINERALS

Huge Impact hopes for world-class Lake Hope HPA play

AFTER battling for the past 16 years on multiple exploration plays around Australia and effectively getting nowhere, Impact Minerals managing director Mike Jones believes the junior has finally got its hands on an asset that offers the sort of potential that saw Alpha HPA go from a virtual nobody six or so years ago to a plus-$500 million capitalised company.

Lake Hope, WA

Lake Hope, WA

Capitalised at about $25 million, Impact this week unveiled the Lake Hope high purity alumina project on a salt lake near Hyden in Western Australia.

Speaking at the Brisbane Mining Conference, Jones says it looks like a world-class deposit that could be developed very quickly.

And at costs equal-to, or below, that being forecast by Alpha HPA, which is using a disruptive technology and which evidently has got the HPA world enthralled.

According to indications given by Jones, Lake Hope has all the grade, metallurgical, orebody shallowness and orientation, plus environmental attributes, to be a world-class project.

Contained alumina oxide at Lake Hope could total US$20 billion in value.

Scoping numbers and an initial resource estimate are expected in upcoming months.

A mining lease application will be lodged in the next six months.

HPA is used in LEDs and increasingly in the lithium battery space to coat anodes, said Jones.

For Jones, the definition of insanity that says it is ‘doing the same thing over and over again' has been ringing true after 16 years of more or less unsuccessful exploration.

Based on what Jones is seeing Lake Hope appears to be an ‘insane' opportunity.

Impact had $2.1 million cash at the end of December.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining News Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining News Intelligence team.

editions

MiningNews.net Research Report 2024

Access a multi-pronged tool to identify critical risks and opportunities in Australia’s mining industry.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Investor Sentiment Report 2024

Survey revealing the plans, priorities, and preferences of 120+ mining investors and their expectations for the sector in 2024.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Mining Equities Report 2023

Access an exclusive, inside look on the quarterly mining IPOs and secondary raisings data and mining equities performance tables with an annual Stock Exchange Comparisons supplement.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence World Risk Report 2023 (feat. MineHutte ratings)

A detailed analysis of mining investment risks across 121 jurisdictions globally, built on 11 ‘hard risk’ metrics and an industrywide survey.