Announcement • Jun 19
Saga Metals Provides Technical Benchmark Comparison Between Its Radar Titanium-Vanadium-Iron Project And The Panzhihua Vanadium Titanomagnetite District
Saga Metals Corp. provided a technical benchmark comparison between its 100%-owned Radar Titanium-Vanadium-Iron Project near Cartwright, Labrador, and the Panzhihua vanadium titanomagnetite district in Sichuan Province, China. Preliminary Davis Tube Analysis results from the Hawkeye zone show strong vanadium pentoxide upgrading in the magnetic concentrate relative to the published Panzhihua VTM concentrate benchmark. The comparison focuses on potential advantages in vanadium recovery and downstream processing at the Radar Project. Panzhihua/Pangang demonstrates that VTM systems can support large-scale vanadium production with a mean grade of 0.3% V2O5 within its ore reserve. Published Panzhihua concentrate data also show a high TiO2 burden in dressed VTM concentrate. Preliminary Hawkeye DTA test work at Radar has produced a magnetic concentrate with strong vanadium enrichment of 0.80% V2O5, including a substantial subset grading approximately 0.81-0.90% V2O5. Over 86% of TiO2 is reported to the non-magnetic fraction setting the stage for a potential ilmenite-rich stream or downstream titanium product pathway. A preliminary Hawkeye Davis Tube sample suite produced magnetic concentrates averaging approximately 0.80% V2O5, with a substantial subset grading approximately 0.81-0.90% V2O5 at magnetic mass yields typically in the 18-38% range. For the higher-quality subset of Hawkeye Davis Tube tests, the corresponding V2O5 recoveries for the magnetic concentrate typically range from 73% to 81%. These results are preliminary and require confirmation across representative samples from Hawkeye and Trapper zones. Panzhihua’s processing challenge is that Ti in titanomagnetite reports largely to a high-Ti slag rather than to a high-value titanium product. High TiO2 in titanomagnetite concentrates can contribute to viscous slag, slag foaming, titanium-bearing furnace accretions, and complex Ti recovery. A lower-Ti magnetic concentrate may offer a potentially simpler Fe–V processing route. DTA interpretation indicates that the non-magnetic fraction commonly contains approximately 86-92% of the head TiO2 and may represent a potential ilmenite-rich stream. In the published Panzhihua flowsheet, Fe and V are recovered principally through the magnetite/titanomagnetite stream, with vanadium reporting to vanadiferous hot metal and subsequently to vanadium slag. Radar's preliminary Hawkeye results suggest a potentially cleaner Fe-V magnetic product, with most titanium reporting to the non-magnetic fraction rather than to the magnetic concentrate. If the vanadium-enriched magnetic concentrate response is replicated across representative Hawkeye and Trapper samples, Radar may offer two separate evaluation pathways: a magnetic Fe-V concentrate focused on iron and vanadium recovery, and a Ti-rich non-magnetic stream focused on ilmenite upgrading. The QMAGT-imaged central oxide-layering corridor validated over 29 km2, encompassing the Trapper Zone, Hawkeye Zone, and the new Falcon Zone. Modelling of the VTM contents at the Trapper and Hawkeye Zones returned a targeted VTM mineralized system very similar to Panzhihua VTM deposit. The simple, coarse-grained VTM mineralization at Saga Metals’ Radar Project has the potential for a clean VTM concentrate with high recovery. The QMAGT-imaged magnetic footprint of the central Radar oxide-layering corridor represents only a portion of the 24,175-hectare Radar Property, which entirely encloses the approximately 160 km2 Dykes River Intrusive Complex. The Property's land position is shown at the same map scale as the digitized ore outline of Panzhihua’s deposit, providing visual context for the relative scale of the geological system that hosts the Radar mineralization. In VTM deposits, vanadium value depends on deportment as much as grade. The preferred outcome is for vanadium to report with titanomagnetite into a magnetic Fe-V concentrate. At the same time, Ti is directed to a separate ilmenite-rich stream or to a downstream Ti product pathway. The magnetic concentrate is enriched in V2O5 relative to the Panzhihua concentrate benchmark. DTA interpretation indicates that the non-magnetic fraction contains a chemically coherent Fe-Ti-V oxide population consistent with an ilmenite stream. A theoretical oxide normalization suggests a potential ilmenite concentrate in the mid-40s TiO2 range with meaningful V2O5 content, but this must be confirmed by dedicated ilmenite separation, mineralogy and hydrometallurgical test work. Further test work is underway to confirm repeatability across zones, optimize grind size and magnetic intensity, quantify mineral liberation, and evaluate downstream processing routes for both the Fe-V magnetic stream and the Ti-rich non-magnetic stream. SAGA's next phase of metallurgical work to focus on converting the encouraging vanadium deportment and titanium-rich ilmenite signal into repeatable recovery and product-quality data. Priority work to include: Davis Tube and Satmagan/Borate Fusion calibration across representative Hawkeye, Trapper North and Trapper South lithologies, zones and grade ranges; Automated mineralogy and EPMA/SEM-EDS work to quantify vanadium in titanomagnetite, ilmenite, silicates and other phases; Grind-size and magnetic-intensity optimization to maximize V2O5 recovery while maintaining a cleaner magnetic concentrate; Preliminary downstream evaluation of Fe-V concentrate options, including smelting, roast-leach, direct-reduction or other relevant pathways; Bench-scale separation of the Ti-rich non-magnetic fraction to assess ilmenite grade, recovery, impurities and residual V2O5 value; Product-quality testing for magnetic concentrate, including Fe grade, V2O5 grade, TiO2, SiO2, Al2O3, MgO, CaO, S, P and pelletizing behaviour; Geometallurgical domain modelling and recovery/yield functions suitable for future resource-stage economic evaluation. The Radar Property comprises 690 mineral claims across 9 mineral licenses, totalling approximately 24,175 hectares in southeastern Labrador, located approximately 10 km south of Cartwright. The Property entirely encloses the Dykes River Intrusive Complex (~160 km2 at the surface) and is accessible year-round via paved Route 510, a Cartwright logging road, and a SAGA-constructed access trail. Diamond drilling, geophysics, trenching and geological mapping have confirmed a 29 km2 oxide corridor encompassing the Trapper, Falcon and Hawkeye Zones. VTM mineralization at Radar is comparable to that of global Fe-Ti-V systems such as Panzhihua (China) and Bushveld (South Africa). Subject to further exploration, resource definition, and metallurgical testing, the Project may represent a strategic source of titanium, vanadium, and iron for North American markets.
