The contract was awarded following the positive outcome of the engineering feasibility study and on-site testing completed by BQE Water earlier in the year.

The contract consists of two project phases. In the first phase, BQE Water will provide all aspects of the plant design, engineering support during procurement and construction and plant commissioning. This initial phase is to be completed within the next 12 months.

In the second phase, BQE Water will provide ongoing operations support services for a period of five years and will be paid a quarterly service fee based on plant performance.

"We are very excited about this project which enables BQE Water to demonstrate our leadership in SART technology in China and to execute the project using a business model that generates recurring revenues from technological know-how and services without the need for capital investment," said David Kratochvil, president and CEO of BQE Water. "I would also like to acknowledge the positive role that funding and advisory services from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) has played in allowing us to accelerate research in clean Canadian technologies such as SART in China."

Songlin Ye, vice president for Asia at BQE Water, added: "The success of our operations at the Guoda gold smelter some 20km away from the Zhongkuang site and our partnership with MWT Water Treatment were both instrumental in establishing the commercial framework for this project. SART implementation is the first step in the bigger picture of modernising cyanide management and waste treatment at the Zhongkuang metallurgical processing facility. The success of SART may open new opportunities to help us develop a long-term relationship with Zhongkuang."