Asra Minerals Limited announced that the preliminary Stage 1 sighter metallurgical testwork and beneficiation is reaching completion for its Yttria clay hosted Rare Earth Element (REE) discovery, at its Mt Stirling Project, near Leonora, in Western Australia. The Stage 1 test work is trialing weak acid (ammonium sulphate) leaching testwork at ambient temperature and pressure to determine if any easily extractable REE zones are indicated, before increasing temperature and pH acid regimes with ongoing Stage 2 REE metallurgical testwork. Assay work on various particle size separations as part of Stage 1 will also focus future work on the optimal size clay fractions and determine where high value domains can be prioritised and potentially beneficiated to further optimise recovery.

Stage 1 Sighter Met results expected during September, and ongoing with Stage 2. The Metallurgical test work on Yttria drill samples will help determine the most effective process that will optimise the recovery of valuable heavy and magnet REE metals. Ultimately, selection of the most economic flowsheet for extraction of REE?s will depend on the cost of supply and ability to recover acid remaining in solution after leaching. The Yttria Deposit at Mt Stirling has the benefit of a high REE basket value, uniquely high Scandium content from surface, and ideal Tier 1 location close to infrastructure.

Extremely low uranium and thorium values across the initial 3.5km of strike so far tested, and the close to surface nature of the clay hosted REE deposit, add to the attractiveness of the REE system at Mt Stirling. Metallurgical work will provide meaningful input parameters data that will allow categorisation of the deposit potentially into Indicated and Measured JORC Code categories, as part of the Mineral Estimation process also underway. Asra has utilised representative samples spread across the Yttria REE deposit, for initial metallurgical test work and sizing analysis to provide valuable early insights to identifying the most promising areas and how different geological and mineralogical domains behave under varying processing laboratory conditions.

The next batch of representative samples is in readiness to commence Stage 2 metallurgy. This is aimed at allowing the Company to proceed with greater confidence into a more comprehensive Stage 3 program of ore characterisation and metallurgical test work to further advance economic parameters for the REE project. With only the initial part of the REE-Corridor at Mt Stirling being drill tested, Asra has significant upside potential for extending the REE mineralisation footprint at the Mt Stirling project.