PROJECTS AND EXPLORATION
The Pre-Feasibility Study completed last year outlines a large
high-grade reserve with a minimum 16-year mine life for the
project, producing 362 000 tonnes per annum of 6% Li2O in
spodumene concentrate at attractive costs.
“Mali is an established mining jurisdiction that already has a
number of mature gold mines operated by major global miners,
and we have worked closely with the government to progress
Goulamina through Mali’s permitting process,” says Evans. “Mali
is Africa’s third biggest gold producer and is keen to facilitate
the diversifi cation of its minerals sector,” adds Evans.
BHP DIVEST FROM NIMBA
• Location: Guinea
• Phase: Pre-development
• Resource: Iron ore
Diversifi ed mining company BHP Biliton says it is near a deal to
divest its stake in Guinea's Nimba iron-ore deposit. Meanwhile,
three other large mining companies are vying to develop
Guinea’s Simandou, the largest known untapped iron-ore
reserve in the world.
Guinea has struggled for decades to extract money from its iron-
ore, which has been left undeveloped because of protracted
legal disputes and the cost of infrastructure.
BHP has tried for years to sell its stake in the Nimba prospect,
which does not fi t the company's preference for operating in
stable, developed economies. Banking sources, speaking on
condition of anonymity, said the price would be insignifi cant as
BHP is keen to seal a deal.
This year, a rise in iron-ore prices following cyclone disruption in
Australia and reduced output in Brazil after a Vale dam burst in
January, combined with a resolution of one of the legal disputes
that have blocked Simandou's development, helped to revive
interest in Guinea's assets.
In addition to interest in Simandou, there has also been a fl urry
of interest in smaller iron-ore deposits near Guinea's border with
Liberia that theoretically could be exported via a much shorter
link to the Liberian coast.
Those seeking to develop them are big mining personalities:
Mick Davis, chief executive of Britain's ruling Conservative party
and former Xstrata boss; Israeli billionaire Beny Steinmetz; and
another mining billionaire Robert Friedland, who leads HPX, a
privately-owned US corporation.
(Extracted and edited from article originally published by Reuters)
Mick Davis, ex CEO of Xstrata, is looking to develop iron ore deposits in
Guinea.
8
African Mining November 2019
www. africanmining.co.za