INTERVIEW: Empire Metals to produce first batches of titanium pigment in 2026

Major titanium deposit developer Empire Metals is moving forward with continuous piloting to prove that low-temperature, atmospheric leaching technology is the optimal method for converting its high-grade titanium ore initially to a high-grade pigment product before moving to a feasibility study in 2026, Managing Director Shaun Bunn said in an interview with Platts, part of S&P Global Energy.

Empire Metals is focused on commercializing the Pitfield Titanium Project in Western Australia, where it has held the exploration license in a joint venture since 2022, and serves as manager and operator.

Although the company is in the early stages of its discovery-to-production journey, it has already developed a flow sheet and has produced test samples with 99.25% purity titanium dioxide suitable for titanium sponge metal or pigment feedstock.

Share of output to feed metal production

"There's no substitution for the titanium dioxide pigment. It's the whitest and brightest of all, with numerous applications including plastics, paper, paints, and other chemical uses," Bunn said.

"So, it's not a small market; it's a $24 billion market, with 9 million metric tons of contained TiO2 traded around the world, and you've got a growth factor linked to GDP, but sitting above its average, so close to 4%."

With annual global consumption growth nearing 360,000-400,000 mt, Empire Metals views this volume as a logical first-stage production target. Part of its future feedstock output, however, will be sent to a titanium metal-producing partner.

Titanium, which is half the weight of steel, yet equally as strong, is used in aircraft and aerospace applications and is listed among Australia's critical minerals, according to Bunn.

Due to sanctions, a significant portion of the titanium metal supply from Russia and Ukrainian ilmenite, which supported Russian production, is diminishing. Aside from Japanese production, Western end-users may increasingly depend on China to fill this gap.

Empire Metals' value proposition is based on offering a better alternative to 90% of the current supply, which comes from ilmenite deposits. The type and purity of the Pitfield ore endow it with a fivefold better grade compared to mineral sand in situ. Extracting will be much less polluting due to free-digging methods, resulting in negligible mining costs. Converting the ore into pigment is also expected to be lower in cost and environmental impact, as Pitfield minerals are anatase and rutile, not ilmenite, Bunn said.

The Pitfield project has a maiden JORC Mineral Resource Estimate of 2.2 billion mt of ore, grading 5.1% TiO₂, which equates to 113 million mt of contained TiO₂.

Differences from ilmenite treatment

While the company will need to concentrate its ore, the processing method differs significantly from that of ilmenite, which is refractory, difficult to crack and loaded with iron inclusions. The quality of the Pitfield ore allows for atmospheric leaching, leading to much lower costs, reduced energy consumption, and a smaller carbon footprint.

"To produce titanium pigment from ilmenite, companies use either the sulfate process or the chloride process, so either high-temperature sulfuric acid or chlorine gas. We don't do either of those," Bunn said.

"We are adopting technology from other industries; the processes may not look like what the sulfate or the chloride companies do, but the chosen chemistry has been around for 100 years, and our ore responds very well to it. It is just that the technology transfer is innovative, that Empire Metals has to convince investors and, ultimately, consumers that it works."

The immediate milestone will be to transition from batch-type testing to continuous piloting, in collaboration with local metallurgical laboratories in Perth. This approach will eliminate the need to purchase or build a pilot plant.

The company plans to lease one and have it operational by the second quarter of 2026. By mid-year, it will have run the first few pilots, with trial parcels of up to 10,000 mt, generating sufficient product to engage the market.

Further de-risking the project

With continued success over the following three to six months, Empire Metals anticipates moving to the feasibility study phase. The company has received strong support, being one of the top mining stock performers on the AIM for the past two years. It recently raised GBP7 million from long-term investors, in addition to the GBP4.5 million earlier this year.

At some point, it will need to spend more, so the company is now seeking to attract more institutional-type investors, adding to an established retail investor base, and is considering a dual listing on the ASX.

Additionally, it may seek equity partners or apply for a loan from the Australian government's $4.5 billion critical minerals facility, emphasizing both the titanium criticality and the size of the resource. It is sufficient to support a multigenerational supply, with the future open-pit mine in a Tier 1 jurisdiction expected to operate for over 100 years. The project will benefit from access to rail and port facilities and will have minimal overburden, resulting in near-zero waste.