Sierra Rutile Mine

TRG owns the Sierra Rutile Mine through its subsidiary Sierra Rutile Limited (SRL). The mine is located in the southwest of Sierra Leone near the Imperri Hills, some 30 km from the Atlantic Ocean, on low lying coastal plains about 135 km southeast of the capital Freetown. SRL holds mining leases over a land area of 580 sq. km in which nineteen separate rutile deposits have been identified.

The mining concession is one of the largest natural rutile deposits known in the world. In 2005 Mine Development Associates estimated that proved and probable reserves at SRL were 259 million tonnes at 1.48 per cent recoverable rutile, giving a projected mine life of 19 years. In addition, there is potential for zircon production which is utilised in the production of refractories, ceramics and zirconium chemicals.

The mine currently employs two bucket ladder dredges, Dredge D1 and  Dredge D2 and conventional mineral processing methods to produce rutile, ilmenite and small amounts of zircon.

Production capacity currently represents approximately 23 percent of the world’s annual supply of natural rutile, however this is expected to increase to 30 percent by 2008 when dredge D3 is completed.

The mine is self-sufficient mine with its own infrastructure and ancillary services.

SRL production capacity growth

Dredge D1

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Dredge D1

Dredge D1 is an electronically operated bucket ladder dredge with an annual production capacity of 1,100 tonnes per hour, equivalent to a bucket speed of 23 to 26 buckets per minute. The Dredge has on-board processing equipment and the off-take is pumped via a floating pipeline to the floating concentrator. From the concentrator the heavy mineral concentrate is transferred to a feed preparation plant where it is upgraded from approximately 80% to 96% heavy minerals before being transferred to a dry mill for separation into rutile and ilmenite.

Dredge D2

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Dredge D2

Dredge D2 was commissioned in November 2007 by the President of Sierra Leone and has an annual production capacity of approximately 100,000 tonnes per annum, the same as Dredge D1. Dredge D2 is a complete unit comprising a bucket ladder dredge and heavy mineral separation plant mounted on a single pontoon. Tailings from the combined unit will be disposed 1000ft - 1500 ft behind the dredge by way of a floating pipeline and auxiliary pontoon. Final concentrate from the onboard treatment plant will be pumped to shore via a 4” concentrate pipe line. When running at full capacity the Dredge has a maximum hourly throughput of 1350 tonnes per hour, and is  expected to be operational for 7000 hours a year. The Dredge is expected to start commercial production in December and the Company expects to begin shipping the material produced by Dredge D2 in the first quarter of 2008.

Dredge D3