Aclara Announces Discovery of 168 Mt Ionic Clay Mineral Resource at Its Carina Module in Goias, Brazil

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / December 12, 2023 / Aclara Resources Inc. ("Aclara" or the "Company") (TSX:ARA) is pleased to announce the maiden mineral resource estimate ("MRE") for its regolith-hosted ion adsorption clay project located in the State of Goias, Brazil, known as the Carina Module (the "Project").

Highlights

• The initial inferred mineral resource for the Project is estimated at 168 Mt with a grade of 1,510 ppm total rare earth oxide ("TREO") and 477 ppm desorbable rare earth oxide ("DREO"¹)
• The average net smelter return ("NSR"²) value of the resource is US$32.3/t when using a cut-off value of US$7.4/t
• The deposit contains significant quantities of dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr), which are the rare earth elements critical to the production of permanent magnets used in electric vehicles and wind turbines
• Recovery of rare earths from the Project is fully compatible with the technology patented and successfully demonstrated on a pilot scale by Aclara in Chile, designed to minimize both cost and environmental footprint
• The near-surface location of the deposit results in a very low strip ratio (<0.4) providing a positive backdrop for a low-cost mining operation
• The 168Mt of inferred mineral resources at the Carina Module complements the 27.5 Mt of measured and indicated mineral resources, and 1.7 Mt of inferred mineral resources at Aclara's Penco Module in Chile

Next Steps

• Production of samples by processing the Project's ionic clays at Aclara's pilot plant in Chile during December 2023 and January 2024
• Completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") in January 2024
• Pursuit of additional resources through the completion of a reverse circulation ("RC") drilling campaign, which is already underway and scheduled to be completed in Q2 2024

Aclara CEO, Ramon Barua, commented:

"The combination of its large size and attractive grades makes the Carina Module an outstanding deposit of ionic clays and significantly increases Aclara's total resource base. The fact that we can apply our patented metallurgical recovery process, which combines competitive costs with superior environmental qualities, provides a promising backdrop for the upcoming Preliminary Economic Assessment. We are excited by the possibility of becoming a significantly larger supplier of magnetic rare earths, especially dysprosium, given how critical these elements are in our planet's fight against climate change."

^{2 NSR Cut-off: The NSR Cut-off used is based on the marginal costs of the Project. Using a marginal cut-off to discriminate between waste and plant feed (ore) ensures that the net revenue value of the rare earth concentrate produced is equal to the cost of producing it. Since this strategy is applied only to material contained by the "optimal" pit, which contains material that must be mined out, it will maximize cash flow over the life of the operation.}

Mineral Resource Statement

The mineral resource has been estimated using the results obtained from 201 auger drill holes (1,630 m) and 1,418 samples. At a 7.4 US$/t NSR cut-off the mineral resource stands at 168 million tonnes ("Mt") in the inferred mineral resources category, @ 1,510 ppm TREO containing an average Dy and Tb grade of 42.1 ppm and 6.9 ppm, respectively. The mineral resource is reported in accordance with the requirements of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").

Table 1. Carina Module Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (Effective November 3, 2023) *

1. *Notes:
2. CIM (2014) definitions were followed for mineral resources
3. Mineral resources are estimated above a net smelter return (NSR) value of 7.4 US$/t
4. Mineral resources are estimated using average long term metal prices and metallurgical recoveries as outlined in the paragraph discussing Cut-off Determination and Selection
5. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability
6. Totals may not add or multiply accurately due to rounding

Cut-off Determination & Selection

The MRE is pit-constrained using GEOVIA Whittle 2022 software, with an overall slope angle of 25° and a mining cost of US$2.13/t. The MRE is reported at an NSR marginal cut-off cost of US$7.4/t based on processing costs, plus royalties and general and administrative cost estimates. The NSR calculation uses recoveries that are based on preliminary metallurgical test work performed by the AGS Laboratory in La Serena, Chile³.

• Selling prices for rare earth oxides: The price estimates in US$/kg used for pit optimization are La₂O₃ = 0.68, CeO₂ = 0.69, Pr₆O₁₁ = 144.18, Nd₂O₃ = 150.75, Sm₂O₃ = 2.39, Eu₂O₃ = 27.45, Gd₂O₃ = 71.55, Tb₄O₇ = 1,789.25, Dy₂O₃ = 477.25, Ho₂O₃ = 137.25, Er₂O₃ = 59.10, Tm₂O₃= 0.0, Yb₂O₃ = 19.85, Lu₂O₃ =834.75, Y₂O₃ = 2.86.
• Metallurgical recoveries: Obtained from the 1,432 drilling sample analyses performed by AGS Laboratory in La Serena, Chile, tested under conditions that carry out desorption at a pH of 4.0, plus a synthetic lixiviant solution designed to emulate the predicted concentrations of recycled salts generated in the closed-circuit process.
• Plant efficiency: Variable by element, ranging from 90.5 to 99.1% with an approximate average of 94%.
• Carbonate transportation and selling cost= US$0.032/kg of carbonates.
• Carbonate purity= 92.7%

Chart 1: Carina Module grade tonnage curve

All technical and economic parameters will be subject to further consideration during the preparation of the PEA, which is expected to be issued in January 2024.

Aclara's Projects Resources

Table 3: Carina Module - Mineral Resource Estimate (Effective November 3, 2023) & Penco Module Mineral Resource Estimate (Effective October 13, 2022)