Kuvimba ink deal with British, Chinese firms

STAFF WRITER

Kuvimba Mining House, a subsidiary of Mutapa Investment Fund, has signed investment agreements with leading foreign (British and Chinese) companies in the global lithium market.

 

KMH has signed a binding Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) agreement with the Chinese consortium for a three million tonne per year ore processing plant.

The plant is set to be commissioned within 18 months and shall generate a an estimated US$600 million per year from a planned 600,000 tonnes of lithium concentrate.

 

It is expected that a second plant shall be installed following the completion of a second round of exploration activities which are underway.

The BOT period shall be six years during which period Sandawana employees shall be trained on operating the state-of-the-art processing equipment.

The consortium has committed to providing funding for the development of the mine, a concentrate plant and associated infrastructure (water, power, road, accommodation etc).

 

The financing of the first plant is expected to be circa US$310m which shall be disbursed within the next 18 months.

 

The loan shall be paid back to the Consortium during the BOT period.

Kuvimba Mining House Acting Group CEO,Trevor Barnard, said: “We are elated to have established these groundbreaking agreements with International entities. “Kuvimba Mining House is on foot to become a world-class lithium processing company, with a strong competitive edge in marketing high-quality lithium concentrate.

 

“It is encouraging to see the growing trust and confidence in the Zimbabwean Minerals sector by the broad spectrum of investors. We are committed to mutual partnership of transparency, accountability, and efficient management of our local resources and this will underline the way we work.’’

 

Sandawana Mines has one of the largest lithium deposits in Africa spanning a 21km long strip along the Mweza Mountain Range in Mberengwa district Zimbabwe. The former emerald mining company is also rich in Tantalite, Mica, and Gold.

Sandawana Mines employs over 600 local people, with 20% of vacancies reserved for women.

The Mine has successfully transferred the Sandawana Mines clinic from the Ministry of Health to Sandawana Mines ownership to establish a partnership with national health services providers to build a state-of-the-art hospital in Mberengwa.

 

Kuvimba Mining House through, Sandawana Mines has widened, built, and rehabilitated over 20km of road networks in Mberengwa and it is expected that over a 100km road network that links the mine and Zvishavane shall be developed.

 

Water reticulation infrastructure shall be 30km long  and villagers along the pipeline shall benefit.

 

 

 

 

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