Aspire Mining has Ovoot’s premium fat coking coal category confirmed as customer validation process begins

Aspire Mining Ltd (ASX:AKM) (FRA:WKU) has received fresh laboratory results confirming that its Ovoot Coking Coal Project (OCCP) in Mongolia is a high-quality premium fat coking coal of high value and that is in demand in neighbouring China. A 60-kilogram sample of fresh coking coal indicative of Ovoot’s Upper Seam, which will be the focus of the Ovoot Early Development Project, was tested by SGS in Tianjin China. The key results are consistent with earlier laboratory tests and reaffirm the attractiveness of Ovoot Fat Coking Coal as having outstanding caking, fluidity and plastic properties across a wide temperature range. Investors have responded positively with shares up more than 35% in early trading to 10 cents.  “Support Ovoot funding development” The company will now work with Chinese and Russian institutes to pre-qualify the coal prior to marketing activities commencing. Aspire chairman David Paull said: “The receipt of these test results was a reminder of the high-quality fat coking coal that the world-class Ovoot Coking Coal Project can produce. “This coal has previously been well received by Russian and Chinese end-users and we will now work to secure sales commitments to support Ovoot funding development.” The company will engage with Chinese and Russian technical institutes and steel mills to confirm value in use. Summary of results “Classified at highest category” The company hired Ross Brims, an experienced coal processing and technology expert to manage the coal’s certification process for Chinese steel mills. He said: “In my view and after reviewing all of the current and historical data, Ovoot would be expected to be classified at the highest category of fat coking coals available to the Chinese steel industry.” Fat coking coals are used to blend with other coking coals with lower coking properties making up around 5% to 10% of the total blend - allowing for reduced reliance on prime hard coking coals in the blend. Under the Chinese coking coal classification system, Ovoot’s coal would be classified as FM 36# Metabituminous Coal. Also fits Russian coal classification Ovoot Coking Coal also fits within the Fat (Zh) and Coking Fat (KZh) coking coal categories within the Russian coal classification system. The characteristics that make a fat coal important to add to blends include the wide plastic range, in that it is able to blend with numerous other types of coals with narrower melting ranges. It also has very high fluidity which allows for the coal to mix well with the other coals in the batch. Additionally, the plastic layer (Y Index) effectively bonds particles from other coals, the thicker the plastic layer the better. Source: sxcoal.com. Making up Chinese shortfall High-quality fat coking coals have an important value in use in the Chinese steel industry, particularly at present with import limitations being put on Australian hard coking coals. China is not self-sufficient in sourcing hard coking coals and since 2009 has relied on imports to make up the shortfall. Adding quality fat coking coals allow steel mills to add lower quality coking coals into the batch, more than what hard coking coals could carry to make quality coke. Fat coking coals like Ovoot’s would be used between 5% to 10% of a coke batch in order to support the carrying ability of the limited supply of prime hard coking coals. Notably, fat coking coals are priced at around the same as hard coking coals in Tianjin China.