Operations Update and Layer 21 Results
Summary by AI BETAClose X
This announcement contains inside information
Ironveld plc
("Ironveld" or the "Company")
Operations Update and Layer 21 Results
Ironveld (AIM: IRON), the mining development company focused on high-value strategic metals and mineral processing products, is pleased to announce a rare earths and phosphate discovery at Layer 21, supported by independent mineralogical and geochemical analysis, and to provide an update on DMS plant performance and commercial development.
Highlights
- Layer 21 core samples returned 858 to 1,543 parts per million total rare earth oxides (TREO), with neodymium and praseodymium oxides representing approximately 25% of TREO.
- Mineralogy confirms vanadiferous titaniferous magnetite, titanomagnetite, ilmenite and apatite, supporting evaluation of a flowsheet targeting potential rare earth recovery, alongside the commercial recovery of magnetite, ilmenite and apatite concentrates, which are used in the DMS and steel industry, and pigment and fertilizer industries respectively.
- DMS plant feed throughput is currently reaching approximately 4.5 tonnes per hour, compared with 2.5 to 3.5 tonnes per hour reported in July.
- Discussions with three prospective counterparties are progressing towards supply agreements, supported by positive test feedback from a major international coal producer.
- A further customer has confirmed its intention to place a 100-tonne order, for bulk testing purposes, with the formal purchase order and payment awaited.
- Additional sample activity includes a prospective South African coal producer and a large coal producer operating in Mozambique.
Rare Earth Discovery at Layer 21
Further to the announcement of 14 July 2026, the Company has received mineralogical and geochemical results from the Layer 21 borehole cores which have been mapped and analysed by Mintek, South Africa’s national mineral research organisation.
About Layer 21
Ironveld engaged Mintek to perform a mineralogical study on the two boreholes previously drilled in Layer 21 to a depth of 100m and 2km apart, into the magnetite layers, which occur across the Company's mining rights. Layer 21 is a magnetite-bearing geological horizon within Ironveld’s mining rights in South Africa’s Bushveld Igneous Complex, outcropping to the west of the Main Magnetite Layer. The horizon contains vanadiferous titaniferous magnetite as well as ilmenite and the phosphate-mineral apatite, offering potential for several mineral products from the same mined material.
The Company’s internal assessment has indicated potential target mineralised tonnage of approximately 200 million tonnes. This indication of scale is conceptual and is not a defined Mineral Resource or Mineral Reserve. Further exploration is required to establish its extent, continuity and grade, and it is too early to determine whether that work will result in the definition of a Mineral Resource.
Geochemical Results
Geochemical assays returned the following mineralised drill intersections:
|
Borehole |
From m |
Interval m |
Fe2O3 % |
TiO2 % |
P2O5 % |
|
HWI45 |
55.5 |
15 |
48.74 |
8.11 |
6.35 |
|
HWI46 |
29.5 |
23 |
45.82 |
7.47 |
5.83 |
Several core samples were assayed for rare earths and returned grades ranging from 858 to 1,543ppm TREO. Neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr) oxides together represent approximately 25% of TREO in the assayed samples.
The strong correlation between P2O5 and TREO across the samples supports an association between the rare earth mineralisation and apatite. Further mineralogical and metallurgical work will assess the distribution and recoverability of the rare earth elements.
The P2O5 grades reported in these intersections are of a similar order of magnitude to phosphate grades reported for Foskor’s Phalaborwa deposits in its 2024 Integrated Annual Report. Separately, Rainbow Rare Earths is developing a project to recover rare earths from historic phosphogypsum tailings at Phalaborwa. Whilst these provide regional context; differences in mineralogy, processing history and feed characteristics mean that equivalent recoveries or economics cannot be assumed for Layer 21.
The mineralogical and geochemical results have been reviewed by Ironveld’s Technical Director and independently reviewed by an external geologist with extensive experience in rare earth mineralisation.
Conceptual Processing Flowsheet
Mineralogical characterisation confirms the presence of magnetite, titanomagnetite, ilmenite and apatite. The relatively coarse grain size of these minerals indicates potential for separation using established mineral processing techniques. The conceptual flowsheet to be evaluated comprises:
- Multistage milling and Low Intensity Magnetic Separation (LIMS) to target recovery of a DMS-grade magnetite product.
- Wet High Intensity Magnetic Separation (WHIMS) to target recovery of an ilmenite concentrate.
- Flotation to target recovery of an apatite concentrate.
The first stage would build on Ironveld’s existing magnetite processing experience. WHIMS and flotation are established mineral separation technologies, although their suitability for Layer 21, together with recoveries and achievable product specifications, remains subject to metallurgical testing. Recovery of rare earths from the apatite concentrate would require a separately evaluated downstream processing route.
Business Case for Layer 21
The business case for Layer 21 centres on the potential to generate several revenue streams from the same mined material through the production of DMS-grade magnetite, an ilmenite concentrate and a phosphate-bearing apatite concentrate, with additional upside from potential rare earth recovery. This approach could spread mining and shared processing costs across multiple saleable products, increasing the value recovered per tonne and diversifying Ironveld’s revenue base. Development would build on the Company’s magnetite processing experience, with additional separation stages evaluated as the project advances. The neodymium and praseodymium content adds a further potential source of value. Commercial viability will depend on resource definition, metallurgical performance, concentrate quality, capital and operating costs, and market demand.
Layer 21 Next Steps, expected to commence in the near term.
- Metallurgical testing to assess the conceptual flowsheet, mineral recoveries, concentrate specifications and relevant technical and economic parameters.
- Further geological assessment to establish an appropriate exploration programme and determine the work required to define an Exploration Target and, subsequently, a Mineral Resource.
- Economic assessment of the potential production and sale of magnetite, ilmenite and apatite concentrates.
- Evaluation of downstream processing routes, potential partners and commercial options for rare earth recovery from apatite.
The Company expects to finance the next stages of work on Layer 21, including the project’s development costs, from revenues generated through the existing DMS plant managed by Daemaneng.
Operational and Commercial Update
Plant Performance and Product Qualification
Plant feed throughput is currently approximately 4.5 tonnes per hour (“tph”), an improvement on the 2.5–3.5 tph reported in July 2026. This represents approximately 90% of the plant’s design throughput of 5 tph.
The Company is continuing to refine plant design parameters to achieve optimal product size and best price for the DMS grade product.
In order to achieve the Particle Size Distribution (“PSD”) to maximise pricing, the plant either has to reduce the feed size and the grinding media size or reduce the throughput and testing of these metrics to optimise plant outputs are ongoing.
While the PSD is not yet fully consistent across production batches, technical feedback from major international coal producers has confirmed that the test samples provided by Ironveld meet their respective PSD acceptance ranges. This feedback is encouraging and supports the suitability of the product for the intended applications, subject to consistent production quality and completion of customer qualification requirements.
The immediate operational focus is on improving mill stability, consistently achieving design throughput and further optimising product quality and uniformity.
Commercial Development and Prospective Supply Agreements
Ironveld’s business development activities continue to progress, both internationally and in Southern Africa, beyond trial production and technical assessment, with a number of prospective customers advancing towards commercial negotiations and potential longer-term supply arrangements, and further details will be announced as required. These engagements represent encouraging progress in broadening the Company’s prospective customer base and developing opportunities for recurring sales and longer-term supply arrangements.
While customer engagement and technical feedback have been positive, the prospective opportunities remain subject to ongoing evaluation, agreement on commercial terms and, where applicable, the execution of definitive supply agreements. Sample requests, technical acceptance and expressions of interest do not, in themselves, constitute binding purchase commitments.
Existing Supply Contract
Deliveries under the existing supply contract are temporarily on hold following technical difficulties encountered by the customer during commissioning of its processing plant.
In the interim, the plant operator is stockpiling material allocated to the customer in preparation for the resumption of deliveries once the customer is able to receive product.
The timing of the resumption of deliveries remains dependent on the customer’s commissioning progress. The Company will continue to monitor the situation and provide further updates as appropriate.
Outlook
Ironveld’s operational priorities remain focused on improving mill stability, managing the PSD of the final product, achieving consistent design throughput and producing a uniform product that reliably meets customer specifications.
In parallel, the Company continues to advance its commercial development programme, with several prospective customers progressing towards discussions on trial orders and longer-term supply arrangements.
The improving throughput performance, encouraging technical feedback and expanding commercial engagement provide a constructive platform for the continued development of Ironveld’s DMS magnetite business.
Working Capital
Whilst the Company has built up a material stockpile of DMS grade product in recent months, the temporary halt on sales under the Company’s existing supply contract, and slower than anticipated progress with concluding commercial supply agreements with customers, has had an impact on Ironveld’s working capital position. The Board confirms that Ironveld has sufficient working capital to meet its operational and strategic needs for a period of approximately two months. The Board is currently evaluating a number of well-advanced external funding solutions and has received indications from certain existing shareholders that additional funding is available, and the Board is therefore confident that the Company will be able to capitalise on the commercial opportunities which are in progress.
CEO Comment
Kris Andersson, Chief Executive Officer of Ironveld, commented:
“The rare earths and Phosphate discovery at Layer 21 adds an important new dimension to Ironveld’s asset base. The results provide a basis to evaluate several potential products from the same mineralised horizon, with the neodymium and praseodymium content adding further interest. Our next task is to establish how effectively these minerals can be recovered and whether the opportunity can translate into a commercially attractive development.
“At our DMS operation, throughput is now reaching approximately 90% of design capacity. We still have work to do to achieve consistent performance, but the positive technical feedback from major coal producers is an encouraging endorsement of the material tested.
“Commercially, we are progressing discussions with several prospective customers towards supply agreements, alongside further order and sample activity. This creates an opportunity to build a broader base of recurring business. Our immediate priorities are to convert that interest into contracted sales, resume deliveries to our existing customer when its plant is ready and improve production consistency.
“Together, these developments strengthen Ironveld’s opportunity to grow its magnetite business while assessing the wider value of Layer 21. We look forward to reporting further progress as commercial agreements and technical work advance.
For further information, please contact:
Ironveld plc
Kristoffer Andersson, Chief Executive Officer
c/o Orana Corporate
+44 20 7138 3204
Cavendish Capital Markets Limited (Nomad and Broker)
Derrick Lee / Pearl Kellie
+44 131 220 6939
Turner Pope Investments (TPI) Ltd (Joint Broker)
Andrew Thacker / Guy McDougall
+44 20 3657 0050
The technical information in this announcement has been reviewed and approved by Dr Peter John Cox, who is a Qualified Person as defined in the AIM Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies. Dr Cox is Ironveld’s technical director and holds South African Mine Manager's and Mine Surveyor's Certificates of Competency and has more than 45 years of relevant experience as a consulting engineer in mining, mine management, mineral project evaluation, mineral resource development, mine planning and operations across a range of deposit types including vanadiferous titaniferous magnetite. He has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this document and consents to its inclusion in the form and context in which it appears.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy Policy.
Latest directors dealings
- 2 days ago City of London Investment Group
- 2 days ago Aberdeen Group plc
- 2 days ago NATWEST GROUP
- 2 days ago Ondo Insurtech
- 2 days ago Banco Santander S.A.