| Status |
Project held by diatomite producer Dicalite Management Group. US$6/t Royalty Interest Retained. |
|---|---|
| Target | Diatomite (Industrial Mineral). |
| Key Points |
Production planned. Diatomite to be processed at nearby plant. |
In April 2024, the Company sold a group of mining claims held for the industrial mineral diatomite in the Crow Springs area of Nevada, USA, to Dicalite Management Group (“Dicalite”)
The claims, now sold, cover an area of 2.4 sq. km. and are underlain by extensive deposits of diatomite.
Dicalite plans to use the Crow Springs diatomite as a feed source for its diatomite processing plant at Basalt some 85km distance by road.
Sunrise retains a royalty of US$6/dry ton of diatomite mined and extracted from the claims and Dicalite will have an option to purchase the royalty for US$500,000 after the 10th anniversary of the first royalty payment.
About Diatomite
In its raw form, diatomite is a valuable industrial rock formed by the accumulation in marine and freshwater lake environments of vast quantities of skeletal material from single celled aquatic algae called diatoms.
Diatoms have hollow and lattice-like silica skeletons and the mass accumulation of these skeletons during algal blooms forms a rock with very high porosity. After processing, which can include heating to a high temperature (calcining) to improve quality, diatomite is used, for example, in filtering beer, liquor, wine, fats, fruit juices, and solvents. Commercial deposits of diatomite have a high brightness, a low bulk density and chemical inertness which also make it a suitable filler or carrier material in various industrial and domestic products.
Diatomite is widespread throughout the western USA but large and pure deposits are less common and represent an attractive target. Nevada is already a major producer of diatomite and together with California makes up the largest part of the total US annual production.
2023 US production of diatomite (source: United States Geological Survey):
