Australian Mines may receive Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) funding for its Sconi cobalt-nickel-scandium project in North Queensland.

The company said the project had been under consideration for NAIF financial assistance and had progressed to the due diligence phase.

“I am pleased that the NAIF Board is considering potential funding support for Sconi, our flagship cobalt-nickel-scandium project in North Queensland,” Australian Mines managing director Benjamin Bell said.

“The project has the potential to provide significant upgrades of existing infrastructure located within the Greenvale region within Northern Queensland and 90 per cent of its ongoing annual operational expenditure is expected to be with local businesses.”

Sconi is proposed to produce battery-grade cobalt and nickel products for the burgeoning electric vehicle market, with a forecast life of mine of 20 years.