Anson Resources progresses Paradox Brine infrastructure development

Anson Resources Ltd (ASX:ASN) has progressed applications and negotiations for the use of supporting infrastructure and utilities for the proposed 15,000 tonnes per annum sodium bromide (NaBr) plant to process brine from the Paradox Brine Project in Utah, USA. As detailed in last week's preliminary economic assessment (PEA), the company plans to build a production facility at a site 46 kilometres from the extraction wells to take advantage of the utility and other infrastructure already in place to reduce capital costs. This includes seeking access to power, natural gas, pipeline Rights of Ways (RoW) and extensions as well as road access. Shares have been almost 20% higher in early trade to 4.3 cents. Proposed production site An application for an industrial lease of 35 acres (140,000 square metres) as the site for the production facility has been submitted to the State of Utah, Schools Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA). The proposed lease area is in proximity to electric power, natural gas pipelines, the Blue Hills access road, highway 191 and the nearby Moab Canyonlands airport. A State Park is to the immediate south of Anson’s Paradox claims, with the area used for various recreational activities. The exiting pipeline corridor provides an opportunity to transport the brine away from this area to where there are minimal recreational activities, reducing land disturbance in addition to providing close proximity to existing infrastructure. Public comment and the Utah Resource Development Coordinating Committee (RDCC) processes have been completed and surveys are being conducted as required by SITLA as part of the approval process. Map showing location of proposed production plant and surrounding infrastructure Power supply The site selected for the production plant is near the power transmission and natural gas lines and the Blue Hills Rd which intersect approximately 1 kilometres from the proposed site. Anson has commenced discussions with the local power provider regarding mains power connection with two options under consideration. Option one is a 345-kilovolt transmission line and option two a 138-kilovolt transmission line with a connection to sub-station to be located within SITLA Section 2. Anson is examining the options to provide power from either transmission lines which pass approximately 1,000 meters (within the same SITLA section) from the proposed production site. The initial power requirement for the proposed production facility is 10 megawatts. Natural gas The development of the project also hinged on access to natural gas. Gas from production wells is collected and transport by pipeline to a natural gas production area. Once the gas is converted to natural gas it is transported by a network pipeline for sale to existing customers or is flared as waste. The company plans to take natural gas from an existing gas conversion facility through a 6.8-kilometre pipeline to be constructed directly from the plant but following the exiting pipeline corridor to the proposed production facility. Existing natural gas conversion plant at Blue Hills Existing rail line The existing rail line that runs parallel to Highway 191 is just 4.9 kilometres from the proposed site and Anson is considering the potential for an extension of the rail to the proposed production facility at some point in the future. The Union Pacific owned rail, which was built for the transport of concentrated uranium from a processing plant in Moab, remains in use and connects with the national rail network approximately 20 kilometres to the north at Floy were an existing rail siding is currently in use.