Vast Resources to start prospecting of Baita Plai tailing pond

British exploration and exploitation company Vast Resources has obtained the required license to prospect the waste pond that is situated 7 km away from the mine in Baita Plai.

The company will invest over USD 125,000 in prospecting the pond, aiming to analyze the mineralized tailings cumulated within the past 40 years of mining for reprocessing. The reprocessing involves the extraction of polymetallic ore residues present in the dam, which will lead to the greening of the area.

In the first phase, the company will start a prospecting program in the third trimester of 2016, and then will make a feasibility study in order to evaluate the resource`s sustainability. According to a study made in 2011, in the tailing pond from Faneata there are over 13.500 tons of ore such as copper, zinc, lead, silver and other materials, and the prospecting program that the company will start has the role of confirming the presence of these materials in the pond.

„Through this project, technically, the company will extract the ore left in the tailing ponds and the environment itself will benefit from this process. The tailings gathered in 40 years of mining will be reprocessed and the area will be greened. With the help of some enhanced processing technologies that we already have, the the metalliferous content of the tailings will be easily extracted,” said Andrew Prelea, president and executive director of Vast Resources Romania.

The new license obtained by Vast Resources is stand alone and differs from the exploitation rights that the company is currently awaiting for the Baita Plai mine.

The company was founded in late 2005, having the exploration of mineral deposits in Zimbabwe and Southern Africa as main activity. In addition to the activity in Africa, in May 2013 Vast Resources has turned its attention to Romania.

Natalia Martian