Cobalt Blue works with Mount Isa council to develop sulphuric acid plant

Cobalt Blue has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Mount Isa City Council (MICC) to develop a solution to a looming sulphuric acid supply shortage.

The expected shortage, caused by the forecast 2030 closure of Glencore’s Mount Isa copper smelter, will cause significant impacts for the region’s fertiliser, chemical, and metallurgical industries.

Ahead of this projected closure, Cobalt Blue and the MICC will collaborate on the assessment and feasibility of a new Mt Isa pyrite tailings re-processing operation to manufacture sulphuric acid.

During the assessment phase, the partnership will build and operate a pilot-scale plant using Cobalt Blue’s ReMine+ technology to reprocess existing pyrite tailings, recovering metals such as gold, cobalt, nickel and copper, while generating either elemental sulphur or sulplhuric acid.

Joe Kaderavek, Cobalt Blue’s CEO, said Queensland’s north west regional provides a major opportunity for sustainable resource recovery.

“Our ReMine+ technology can unlock the value of these resources and produce essential commodities, like sulphuric acid, which is critical across several industries in the region,” Kaderavek said.

Mount Isa Mayor Peta MacRae said this MoU aligns with the council’s vision for a sustainable future for the region’s industries and economy.

“It demonstrates our commitment to developing a locally-made solution to the looming sulphuric acid shortage that will otherwise have a huge negative impact on many of our largest industries,” MacRae said.

“This technology solves the issue of dealing with old tailings as well as reinforcing the economics of the supply chain for the whole of Australia. It also reduces the sovereign risk of relying on international sulphuric acid supply.”

The technology has previously been tested on pyrite feedstock at the Broken Hill Cobalt Project, where it produced elemental sulphur, which is a low hazard product that is used as a precursor to manufacture sulphuric acid.

Cobalt Blue will aim to complete proof of concept test work within 16 weeks of receipt of sample.