Sunrise Resources makes good progress towards production at CS

  What it owns CS Project, Nevada: The Plan of Operations envisages a 27-year mine life where both perlite and natural pozzolan are mined from the Main Zone in years 1-15 with pozzolan continuing to be mined in the Tuff Zone in years 16-27. NewPerl, Nevada: The NewPerl Prospect comprises a conical outcrop of glassy volcanic rock having a base diameter of approximately 400m and a height of up to 45m above the surrounding plain. Two key targets have now been identified for follow up where samples have shown excellent expandability results for horticultural grades of perlite. Jackson Wash, Nevada: 16km away from NewPerl, this was originally part of that project but for permitting reasons is now separate.   What it does "Natural pozzolans are experiencing a resurgence in demand based on their strong “green” credentials. "Today, pozzolans are used as a direct additive to concrete mixes and as a partial replacement for cement in amounts of up to 35% of the cementing material "Perlite is a glassy raw material which, when heated in a furnace, pops like popcorn and expands by up to 20 times in volume into a white or pale coloured, low-density material. "Expanded perlite is used in various industrial and household applications such as insulation, paint texturing, building materials, filter aids, insulating industrial cryogenic storage vessels and as a potting medium in gardening and horticulture to aid water retention and aeration of the soil."   How is it doing In May, the US Bureau of Land Management released the environmental assessment (EA) of the CS Pozzolan-Perlite Project for public comment, marking the culmination of a two-year endeavour and is the final stage of permitting. The firm was not hit by the coronavirus pandemic, with all staff working from home.   What the boss says: executive chairman Patrick Cheetham "We are delighted to have reached this final stage in the permitting process and, whilst there have been a number of delays to the process, the end result is a robust environmental assessment." “A highlight of the EA is the contribution of our Project to a reduction in carbon emissions. This comes from from the replacement of Portland cement with CS natural pozzolan and which, at the maximum planned production rate of 500,000 tons per year, gives an annual CO2 reduction equivalent to the average annual CO2 emissions from over 10,400 US households or the carbon sequestered by over 8.2 million tree seedlings grown for ten years." “We will move to initiate first production of perlite and natural pozzolan for larger-scale customer trials as soon as possible after we receive a positive permitting decision with the expectation that this will transition to commercial production in due course on the commitment of potential customers to sales contracts."