Government of Canada supports tests to achieve higher efficiency while lowering emissions
June 29, 2015 – Sydney, N.S. – Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Extending the life of a mine, minimizing industrial waste and extracting a higher purity product: lofty dreams for Cape Breton’s mining ancestors, may soon be a reality for this and future generations, thanks to the research and development being undertaken by Yava Technologies Inc.
Yava Technologies Inc. and its consultants, in partnership with Cape Breton University, will design, build and validate a pilot-scale mining plant to demonstrate a closed-loop process for treating a variety of complex mineral deposits and industrial waste.
The Government of Canada is providing a $400,000 contribution through ACOA’s Business Development Program (BDP) to enable Yava to perform tests at the pilot plant scale. These tests will help establish the viability of a full-scale plant to successfully extract valuable minerals without releasing greenhouse gas. An additional benefit of this technology is that it will enable faster and more economical mine closure procedures due to reduced metal content in tailings.
Sustainable Development Technology Canada is also contributing $399,123 to support this project.
Quick Facts:
- Yava Technologies Inc.’s state-of-the-art laboratory is located at Cape Breton University’s Verschuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and the Environment.
- Yava has developed a high-tech, environmentally friendly mineral recovery process that eliminates the need for traditional mining equipment such as concentrators and smelters, and is designed to produce high-profit, value-added products for a variety of industries.
- Yava’s closed-loop process has the potential to significantly reduce the energy consumption of mining and certain industrial complexes.
Quotes:
“Innovation is a key contributor to improving our quality of life and ensuring our communities remain places where we want to raise our children. Our Government is pleased to support Yava Technologies’ pilot plant as an important step in the ongoing collaborative development of this technology, to improve efficiency. Successful adoption on an industrial scale would result in significant benefits including extended life of extraction operations, a reduced environmental footprint and a higher quality end product.”
- The Honourable Peter MacKay, Regional Minister for Nova Scotia, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, on behalf of the Honourable Rob Moore, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency)
“This pilot plant is enabling us to become more productive and competitive by acquiring new information, adapting our technology to specific industry requirements, and building the management and technical skills needed to innovate, grow and compete.”
- Robert Pepper, President and CEO, Yava Technologies Inc.
“We are thrilled with the federal government’s participation in this innovative project. We are confident that this collaborative initiative can also be leveraged into other exciting opportunities for our partners and for this region.”
- Dr. Andrew Swanson, CEO, Verschuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and the Environment
Associated Link:
Contacts
Kelsie Corey
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of State
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
613-941-7241
Robert Pepper
President and CEO
Yava Technologies Inc.
905-892 4772
Paul Moore
Manager, Communications
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
(902) 426-3470/ (902) 222-3360 (cell)
E-mail: Paul.moore@acoa-apeca.gc.ca
Clarissa Lamb
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Justice
613-992-4621
