INDEPENDENT NEWS

Minerals To Materials Research Progress On New Website

Published: Fri 24 Apr 2020 06:53 PM
New Zealand Institute for Minerals to Materials Research is proud to present our new website, www.nzimmr.co.nz and our subdomain www.labs.nzimmr.co.nz.
Enhancing the economic recovery of gold from alluvial mining, of tungsten and rare earth elements; identifying mineable silica; adding value to the pounamu carving industry is among research projects the New Zealand Institute for Minerals to Materials Research is pursuing.
We are also exploring new uses for New Zealand’s abundant, high-quality coal resources, other than for thermal energy, including by developing advanced, carbon-based materials.
A new web site for NZIMMR has gone live today, providing high-level information on the Regional Research Institute, established in 2017 with $11 million of government seed funding.
More information on the NZIMMR, our people, and our research projects will be added to the web site in the coming weeks and months.
The NZIMMR’s purpose is research into adding value to New Zealand’s diverse mineral resources. This supports the Government’s Minerals and Petroleum Resources Strategy for Aotearoa New Zealand 2019 – 2029, which underscores the importance of a domestic minerals industry.
Adding value to minerals follows a step-ladder approach – from mining raw materials to minerals processing, to intermediate, and, ultimately, consumer products. Ours is a long game, with many stages to reach along the way, so that we spend our funding wisely.
The NZIMMR is in the early stages of our work, having established a Board, and created a high-calibre team, including research scientists, geologists, metallurgists, and minerals processing engineers (bios available on the web site). We are building two laboratories at Spring Creek near Greymouth – shortly to be completed - and we are developing relationships with others, including in research, the mining industry, and materials manufacturers.
Among aims is to work with smaller operators to unlock the potential of their mining operations, on the principle of “mine once and recover all”. We are also working to help make uneconomic minerals economic, to meet ongoing, growing demand worldwide for minerals and materials.
The NZIMMR is based in Greymouth, West Coast, where minerals interests include gold, coal and heavy mineral sands. We are part of the West Coast community, and we are also developing partnerships with larger minerals players in New Zealand. Our Vision Mātauranga strategy is pivotal to our operations, as are our relationships with West Coast iwi.
The NZIMMR is continuing to work during the period of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions while observing all related health and safety protocols.
--- Raelyn Lourie, Chair of the Board of the New Zealand Institute for Minerals to Materials Research

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