The metallurgical study plays a key role in the project’s feasibility study, which is being prepared by AMEC Foster Wheeler and planned to be completed in early 2015.
Highlights of the study include 36.8% and 31.5% drop in consumption of leach acid and leach oxidant, respectively, zero iron addition in leach once steady state operation due to sufficient iron in ore.
It also identified a three times higher loading of the IX resin, thereby reducing the size of the IX circuit and downstream SX circuit.
A 22% and 20% drop in the number of belt filters and NIMCIX parallel trains was also identified.
Forsys Metals CEO Marcel Hilmer said: "The completion of the SGS report is an important milestone towards completing the FS and the development of the Norasa project.
"Our expectation is that the integration of these metallurgical study outcomes in the FS will result in improved economics for the Norasa Uranium Project."
The testwork by SGS confirmed the ferrous ion addition and the impact of barren liquor recycle in a locked cycle pilot campaign, which earlier confirmed that high uranium recoveries could be obtained for the Norasa project, the company said.
As part of the latest program, ion exchange breakthrough curve bulk leaches, slurry settling performance tests and leach slurry viscosity tests have been completed.
