Mount Ridley achieves 92% recovery in bauxite test

• Mount Ridley Mines achieved a 92% aluminium recovery rate and a 97% iron recovery rate from a composite bauxite sample in its first third-party test using its patent-pending Selectro process.
• Primary aluminium production reached approximately 73.8 million tonnes in 2025, representing an estimated US$235 billion market opportunity.
• Mount Ridley Mines stated that the results reinforce its strategy to advance the design and construction of a Selectro demonstration plant.

Mount Ridley Mines (ASX:MRD) reported that its patent-pending Selectro process recovered 92% aluminium and 97% iron from a third-party bauxite sample.

The metallurgical test represents the first application of the Selectro technology beyond the company's Grass Patch mineral resources.

The company stated that the test left a small, pH-neutral, silica-rich residue in place of the caustic red mud generated by conventional refining.

Mount Ridley Managing Director and CEO, Allister Caird commented, "Recovering 92% of the aluminium and 97% of the iron on a first pass basis, while producing a silica-rich residue rather than the conventional red mud, is an exceptional result."

Australian Laboratory Services conducted the test work on a sample supplied by Australian Silica Quartz Group (ASX:ASQ) from its Darling Range Project.

Mount Ridley Mines stated that the initial test results reinforce its plans to design and construct a Selectro demonstration plant.

Following the announcement, the Mount Ridley Mines share price was unchanged at $0.043.

Mount Ridley Mines stated that conventional Bayer refining generates an estimated 150–200 million tonnes of bauxite residue annually.