Fortune Minerals Limited has announced a process waste disposal agreement with SECURE Energy Services for its planned cobalt-copper-gold-bismuth refinery in Alberta, Canada. The backstop agreement is designed to manage liquid and solid waste streams generated during refinery operations.
Under the agreement, SECURE Energy Services will evaluate injection well site options, pumping and piping infrastructure, as well as preliminary engineering and cost estimates for handling liquid and solid process waste. This arrangement is intended to provide Fortune Minerals with a reliable waste management solution as it advances the development of its proposed Alberta refinery.
Fortune Minerals is developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in the Northwest Territories, with plans to process ore concentrate at a hydrometallurgical refinery to be located in Alberta. The company has been working to advance the project as demand for critical minerals, including cobalt, continues to grow in North America amid efforts to build domestic supply chains for battery materials and other strategic applications.
The waste disposal backstop agreement with SECURE represents a key infrastructure planning step for the refinery project. SECURE Energy Services is a Calgary-based company specializing in environmental and fluid management services for the energy and industrial sectors across western Canada. Fortune Minerals has stated that securing waste disposal arrangements is an important component of the overall project development and permitting process.
