Country in focus
Although a consistently low uranium price since 2011 (when
the Fukushima nuclear disaster happened in Japan) has caused
considerable pain for the Namibian uranium sector and for the
economy in general, the country still boasts three of the top
uranium mines in the world: Rössing (which Rio Tinto recently
sold to the China National Uranium Corporation), Paladin
Energy’s Langer Heinrich, and Swakop Uranium’s Husab
operation, all located in the Erongo region, are mega projects.
When one considers that Orano Mining’s (previously Areva)
Trekkopje mine is on care and maintenance, it is an exciting
prospect to envision all four uranium mines in full production
once the uranium market recovers.
At current uranium prices, however, these mines are not at full
capacity. The depressed market recently resulted in Paladin’s
Langer Heinrich uranium mine being placed on care and
maintenance. Namibia, however, finds itself in a unique position
as Swakop Uranium’s Husab mine is owned by a Chinese
parastatal, which is using the yellow cake (uranium concentrate)
for direct use in its nuclear reactors. The new mine, which
entered into production at the end of 2016, is expected to reach
full production in 2019 and is set to become the world’s second-
largest uranium mine.
A proliferation of exploration
According to Lauren Davidson, economist at the Namibian
Chamber of Mines, there has been a significant increase in
exploration projects over the past two years, and in 2017,
NAD300-million was spent by exploration companies in Namibia,
which is expected to increase significantly in 2019.
“There has been a proliferation of exploration projects in the
country over the past two or three years and most of it has
been driven by an increase in demand for battery minerals and
minerals required for the manufacture of new technologies. These
minerals consist of lithium, graphite, rare earth elements (REEs),
cobalt, copper, and tin, most of which are used in energy-saving
batteries or other components in electric vehicles,” Davidson tells
African Mining.
Several companies are, in fact, already mining some of these
minerals, or are in the final stages of bringing their projects into
production. Despite running into trouble in the latter stages of 2018,
mostly due to price fluctuations, Canadian company Desert Lion
Energy delivered its first shipment of lithium to a Chinese off-take
partner in 2018. There are also several prominent projects for REEs
and a recently discovered cobalt deposit, in the north of Namibia.
N
amibia’s mining history dates back many, many years.
Diamonds were discovered on the coast at Luderitz
more than a century ago, and the country has become
a thriving diamond producer, with the Namdeb Diamond
Corporation and De Beers Marine Namibia leading the way.
Uranium was first discovered in the 1920s. In 1966, global
mining giant Rio Tinto secured the mining rights for a massive
deposit at Rössing, in the Erongo region, about 70km from
the coastal town of Swakopmund, and the company started
production 10 years later.
The Uis tin deposit was mined by Iscor until the early 1990s.
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