MELBOURNE, Australia--Mineral sands producer Iluka Resources
Ltd. (ILU.AU) and iron-ore producer Vale SA (VALE) plan to explore
and potentially develop a large titanium deposit in Brazil.
Iluka has signed a development pact and intellectual property
agreement with Vale for a staged evaluation of the deposit in Minas
Gerais state, which could be developed into a large-scale titanium
operation, the Australian company said Wednesday.
The first phase of the study will include geological and
technical evaluations, a market assessment, and a pilot design for
a plant, which is expected to take about 15 months to complete,
Iluka said. If that is successful, the companies plan to move on to
construct a pilot plant and eventually build a commercial-scale
plant.
In terms of funding for the early studies, pilot plant and
feasibility studies, Iluka said it has options to participate up to
49% equity in a joint venture with the Brazilian mining company. It
also has preferential options on other big titanium-dioxide
deposits in Vale's portfolio.
"Iluka's involvement provides the company with the opportunity
to participate in the potential commercialization of one of the
largest known undeveloped titanium mineral deposits," Managing
Director David Robb said.
Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com
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