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Business Reporter
LOCAL mineral processing plant manufacturer Appropriate Process Technologies says it has shifted its focus to designing a new modular platinum gravity recovery system which can be used to process primary ores. The company’s chief executive, Mr Kevin Peacocke, said in a statement that the company had decided to diversify its business in order to meet the demands of every player in the mining industry.
“We are focusing more on designing and incorporating modular platinum group metal specific gravity recovery systems, which can be used to retreat tailing and to process primary ores.
“The main aim is to meet the demands of every player in the industry since our core business is centred on mineral processing,” Mr Peacocke said.
APT is moving away from gold recovery gravity systems and although the company has not yet installed a platinum processing plant in Africa, there are plans to do so soon.
“Our first entry into the platinum industry is the in-house ISO 9001-compliant test work facility that we are operating. The facility is being used to examine and assess several methods of platinum recovery from tailings for a large Zimbabwe-based client and to investigate the gravity recovery of platinum for a local platinum miner,” said Mr Peacocke.
This project is meant to empower local and small-scale miners who are into platinum mining who did not have the right machinery to do their mineral processing.
Mr Peacocke noted that APT’s two PGM gravity-processing products can be installed as an adjunct to existing processes.
They can also be used to complement and improve on the sulphide flotation systems already prevalent in the market.
“What we aim to do is to install our gravity recovery PGM products in phases, initially to complement existing systems, but to get to where we may propose the installation of complete gravity recovery plants to help upcoming platinum miners,” he notes.
APT has two products that it uses for the recovery of PGMs — a Knelson semi-continuous batch concentrator, which targets element metals, such as liberated platinum and other PGMs; and a Knelson continuous variable discharge concentrator, which targets free element platinum, sulphides and semi-liberated sulphides.
The batch concentrator operates at an elevated gravitational force, which is between 60 times and 200 times the gravitational force on earth
“What makes this development and testing process unique is that the ore dictates the process that will eventually be chosen and designed,” said Mr Peacocke.
ATP has a presence in 20 countries around the world and their dream is to meet the demands of high end and low entry market levels as well as providing capital to small miners where expansion is possible.
This project started in May and is in the process development stage. It provides alternative methods of platinum recovery using APT technology and is not compelled to use conventional recovery methods.
Meanwhile, APT said it will consider expanding its assembly facility in Kya Sands, Johannesburg, within the next 12 months as business continues to grow driven by increasing demand for its products and services in Africa.
Appropriate Process Technologies is a subsidiary company to Peacocke and Simpson mineral processor, a company that recently got ISO certified.
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