The PEA has been carried out based on testing results obtained from Gecko Laboratories in Namibia and SGS Lakefield’s facility in Canada.
According to the analysis, the project’s mining and processing costs are estimated at $487 per ton with a 17-year operational life, produding 2,500 ton per annum.
Additionally, the analysis estimates that by installing parallel processing lines, a 17-year lifespan of the operation at 2,500 tons per annum can be increased to 5,000 and 10,000 ton per year.
The PEA also estimated the cost of the preliminary design of the processing circuit and processing equipment to be at $1m and additional annual operating costs.
Next Graphite CEO Cliff Bream said: "This sets the stage for an initial revenue stream for the Company, as well as impetus to continue mining of our existing adits and drill our other identified underground graphite resources.
"This PEA does not account for graphite that is still underground, which we plan to explore and develop as we ramp up operations and target new locations.
"We are currently in discussions with off-takers for the sale of graphite bearing rock from our above-ground graphite and we are talking with potential joint venture partners to accelerate the construction of an on-site processing facility."
