The company says the refinery will be able to produce either cobalt sulphate for the lithium-ion battery market or cobalt metal for industrial, military or aerospace industries. The plant will produce 25,000 tonnes of cobalt sulphate per year, an amount equal to 5% of all cobalt produced around the globe.
First Cobalt is also engaged in several cobalt exploration projects. The North, Central and South projects near Cobalt, Ontario, host historic silver-cobalt producers. A technical report on these properties was completed in 2018.
Also of interest is the Iron Creek cobalt project in Lemhi County, Idaho. First Cobalt drilled the property and produced a resource estimate in 2019 that pegged indicated resources at 2.2 million tonnes grading 0.26% cobalt and 0.61% copper. Inferred resources add 2.7 million tonnes at 0.22% cobalt and 0.68% copper. Material from this source may be treated at the refinery in Canada.
(This article first appeared in The Northern Miner)
