BFS estimates A$271m capital cost for Thunderbird Phase 1 development

The bankable feasibility study (BFS) on the Thunderbird mineral sands project, in Western Australia, has increased projected capital requirements from the A$271-million estimated in the prefeasibility study (PFS), to A$348-million. The BFS was based on an initial 8.5-million-tonne-a-year throughput, doubling to 17-million tonnes a year in year five, with the addition of a second mining unit and processing stream. The Stage 2 expansion will require a further A$195-million in capital.