NEW YORK — Canadian junior tungsten miner Malaga Inc. is planning to reprocess and recover tungsten from the tailings pond at its Pasto Bueno Mine in Peru, a move that would allow the company to recover an additional 31,500 metric ton units (mtus) of tungsten trioxide over the next few years.

The Montreal, Quebec-based company said it plans to build a pilot plant with the capacity to process 300 tonnes of tailings per day to test the concept using an advance on sales from Malaga’s offtake partner, Towanda, Pa.-based Global Tungsten & Powders Corp.

Construction of the plant will begin immediately, with first production expected in the third quarter. The capacity of the pilot plant will be expanded if the project proves successful, the company said, and screens used in the tailings recovery process will also be installed at the company’s main production line to improve recoveries there.

Malaga did not disclose the cost of the plant, and a company spokesman declined to comment.