Walkabout Resources (ASX:WKT) recently announces that it secured a USD 20 million Debt Funding Facility (Facility) with CRDB bank for its Lindi Jumbo Graphite Mine Project in Tanzania.

Walkabout Resources explains that the funding of the Lindi Jumbo Graphite Project gives the company a clear line of site to the commencement of production and timelines towards the export of concentrate.

Negotiation of pricing, in line with emerging market-related prices, in the final binding offtake agreements can now commence as stipulated in the term sheet.

The Lindi Jumbo Graphite Project

The 100%-owned high-grade, high-margin, large flake Lindi Jumbo Graphite project is located in south-eastern Tanzania approximately 200km from the port of Mtwara.

The high-grade resource outcropping at surface boasts the highest reserve grade of any undeveloped graphite project in Africa of 5.5mt @ 17.9% Total Graphitic Carbon (TGC).

The high reserve grade and extraordinary distribution make Lindi Jumbo an exceptional project in the graphite world.

The battery industry is due to become the largest sector of demand for the graphite supply chain market. Lindi Jumbo is expected to produce about 25% of its product suite, or around 10,000 tonnes per annum, to supply energy storage applications.

The project complies with the Local Content laws of Tanzania, implementing a fully outsourced operating model whereby the key components of mining, treatment, logistics, and camp accommodation are outsourced to local Tanzanian contractors, which is further complemented by the debt finding through CRDB bank of Tanzania.

Tanzania Graphite Reserves

As of 2019, Tanzania’s estimated graphite reserves stand at 18 million tonnes ranking 5th in the world after Turkey (90 million tonnes), China (73 million tonnes), Brazil (72 million tonnes), and Mozambique (25 million tonnes).

Tanzania’s graphite reserves are being explored and developed by several Australia-based graphite developers. Production stages have not been reached yet.

Resource Mining (ASX:RMI) recently announced that it has commenced exploration field activities on its Tanzania Kabulwanyele Nickel Project in Tanzania.

A geological team has already completed a desk study of regional geology and previous work undertaken.

An exploration team has now been mobilized to the site to commence field exploration activities, which include geological mapping and collection of systematic soil and rock samples.

The sampling program aims at studying the distribution of nickel and cobalt mineralization in the area of known mineralization. It will comprise a total of 300 samples that will be collected to cut across the known nickel deposit.

Geological mapping will be conducted in the area previously mapped to have nickel laterites including a buffer of 400m from the boundary of the known mineralization. The main objective will be to delineate the mineralization boundaries, identify more areas of mineralization, and generate drilling targets.

The Kabulwanyele Nickel Project (KNP)

The KNP nickel project is located in the Mpanda District, approximately 35km from the western shore of Lake Tanganyika. The area is part of the western limb of East African Rift systems.

The KNP covers part of the Ubendian rock system of lower Proterozoic rocks, comprising mainly of acidic gneisses, granulites, amphibolites, and ultramafic rocks. Laterite hills at Kabulwanyele are prospective for nickel, cobalt, and manganese. The area has not been subject to modern exploration.

In February 2021, Resource Mining acquired 75% of Australian company Eastern Nickel, which holds 99% of the shares in Eastern Nickel Tanzania (ENT), which has a complete interest in the Kabulwanyele Nickel Project.

On 13th June 2021, the President of Tanzania Samia Suluhu Hassan inaugurated the Mwanza Precious Metal Refinery (MMPR) gold refinery located in the port city on the southern shore of Lake Victoria in north-western Tanzania.

The facility sources precious metal from qualified sources authenticated by the Ministry of Minerals and other sellers from neighboring countries and has the capacity of extracting 480 kilograms per day of 999,9 gold and 60 kilograms per day of silver.

The refinery is the very first in Tanzania and is the result of the vision of the late President John Magufuli who insisted on the critical need for mineral processing industries in the country to cater to the purification of its abundant mineral resources, thus increasing the country’s mining revenues and reduce mineral smuggling.

MMPR was established in January 2020 as a joint venture between the Tanzania State Mining Corporation (STAMICO), ACME Consultant Engineers of Singapore, and Rozella General Trading of Dubai. The refinery commenced operations in April 2021.

Gold refined at MPMR is earmarked for sale to International markets being sold as bullion bars to buyers mainly in the United Arab Emirates which is one of the largest international markets.

In addition, the factory is expected to attract more investment by providing an opportunity for neighbouring countries to refining their minerals.

During the plant’s inauguration ceremony, the Minister of Minerals of Tanzania, Dotto Biteko explained that Tanzania will be able to refine 960 kilograms of gold per day once the construction of the other two refineries in Geita and Dodoma is completed.

He also mentioned that with the construction of these facilities, and the new mining laws and policies, the mining sector’s contribution to Tanzania’s GDP has increased from 5.2% to 6.7% in 2021. And President Hassan reiterated that the government wants to raise the contribution to 10% by 2025.

Tanzania Gold

Tanzania’s gold reserves are estimated at about 45 million ounces. Gold production stood at 48.4 tonnes in 2019.

Tanzania’s gold exports accounted for USD 2.2 billion of total exports in 2019, and USD 2.9 billion in 2020, representing more than 90% of the country’s mineral exports.

Helium exploration company Helium One (AIM: HE1) has announced the commencement of its exploration drilling program at the Rukwa Project in southwestern Tanzania on 12th June 2021.

The company plans a three wells program targeting shallow structures in close proximity to the Itumbula Helium Seeps. 

Each well is planned to test a different trapping style, therefore providing information essential in de-risking the company’s portfolio of prospects across the basin.

Drilling of the first well is expected to take approximately one month to complete and will produce valuable information about the subsurface. 

Helium detection will be constantly monitored during drilling to identify helium gas shows from mud logging. 

On completion, wireline logs will be run to measure formation properties downhole, as well as identifying any pay zones in the success case.

Any discovery will be tested with a drill stem test to attempt to flow a sample of gas to surface for grade analysis.

Helium One CEO David Minchin commented: “The exploration program is the culmination of five years of dedicated work.  Each well will take roughly one month to complete with lessons learned from the first well applied to refine and de-risk drilling of subsequent wells. We look forward to announcing results of our first well at what is a potentially transformative time for the company.”

The Rukwa Helium Project

Rukwa is a large-scale, high-grade, primary helium project covering an area of approximately 3,590 km² in southwestern Tanzania with the potential to become a strategic asset in resolving a supply-constrained market.  

Rukwa hosts independently verified (SRK-2019) Best-Estimate Unrisked Prospective Recoverable Helium Resource (2U/P50) of 138 billion cubic feet (Bcf), making this the largest known primary helium resource in the world.  

The 2U Risked Prospective Resource is estimated at 14.0 Bcf.

London-listed energy and mining company Edenville Energy (AIM:EDL) has recently published an update regarding the Rukwa Coal Project in southwest Tanzania, anticipating that it expects to achieve a full order book over the next few months.

The company reports that following the recent induction of the new President of Tanzania Hon. Samia Suluhu Hassan and the lessening impact of Covid-19 there has been considerable positive sentiment in the region, which appears to be translating into business confidence and action.

This has been further supported by a new approach to the marketing of the company’s coal products. As a result of this, the company is anticipating achieving a full order book over the next few months.

In the event that the expected contracts materialize this would equate to some 6,750-8,750 tonnes per month of washed call and 1,000-1,200 tonnes per month of fines.

Edenville Energy has also recommenced discussions with the Tanzanian Government and recently been invited to submit an unsolicited proposal for the supply of coal to an on-site power station owned and operated by the Tanzanian Government.

Consistent with the positive sentiment in the region the company is working on a number of other supply opportunities in the East African region, for which further expansion of production capacity at Rukwa may be required.

The Rukwa Coal to Power Project

Edenville Energy was granted a mining license by the Ministry of Energy and Minerals of Tanzania in early 2016, to develop the Rukwa coalfields in the country’s southwestern region.

The Rukwa coalfields comprise the Mkomolo, Namwele, and Muze deposits, hosting 173 million tonnes of measured and indicated coal, sufficient to support a 120 MW coal-fired power plant for 30 years.

The Rukwa mine is currently producing up to 4,000 tonnes per month of coal for sale and the company is seeking to increase production up to 10,000 tonnes per month in the near term.

To date over 1,000 tonnes of coal have been transported with an expected ongoing demand of 1,000-1,200 tonnes per month. This material is being dug from existing stockpiles.

Helium exploration company Helium One (AIM: HE1) has announced the presence of helium enriched gas in drilling mud in the Lake Bed Formation at the Tai-1 well at the Rukwa Project in Tanzania.

David Minchin, CEO of Helium One, commented: “We are very excited to have identified the presence of helium in drilling mud from very shallow depth.  Drilling will now continue to the base of the Lake Bed Formation at which point we will run wireline tools to obtain more detailed formation evaluation. Although concentrations of 2.2% He are encouraging indicators of free gas, it is important to note that a helium show is not evidence of commerciality and further evaluation is required by wireline logging to confirm any potential pay zones.  It is also important to note that gas concentrations encountered in mud logging are qualitative rather than quantitative and in-situ grade may be higher or lower than what is measured.

“With over 1000 meters still to drill at Tai-1 these are early days in our exploration drilling.  Early helium shows give us a great deal of optimism for the remaining program and we look forward to providing further updates as the project develops,” Minchin concluded.

Helium One commenced its drilling program at the Rukwa Project in southwestern Tanzania on 12th June 2021.

The company plans a three wells program targeting shallow structures in close proximity to the Itumbula Helium Seeps. 

Drilling of the first well is expected to take approximately one month to complete and will produce valuable information about the subsurface. 

Helium detection will be constantly monitored during drilling to identify helium gas shows from mud logging. 

The Rukwa Helium Project

Rukwa is a large-scale, high-grade, primary helium project covering an area of approximately 3,590 km² in southwestern Tanzania with the potential to become a strategic asset in resolving a supply-constrained market.  

Rukwa hosts independently verified (SRK-2019) Best-Estimate Unrisked Prospective Recoverable Helium Resource (2U/P50) of 138 billion cubic feet (Bcf), making this the largest known primary helium resource in the world.  

The 2U Risked Prospective Resource is estimated at 14.0 Bcf.

According to the Bank of Tanzania (BOT), on Monday 5th July 2021 the mean price of a gold ounce was TZS 4,105,804.003.

The buying price was TZS 4,082,158.594 while the selling price was TZS 4,129,449.412.

The CEO of global mining company Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD)(TSX:ABX), Mark Bristow, has met with Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan on 7th July 2021 to review progress at Twiga Minerals Corporation, the joint venture established in October 2019 to manage the company’s gold mines in the country, and to discuss the partnership’s future plans and prospects.

Barrick manages three gold mine in Tanzania: North Mara, Bulyanhulu, and Buzwagi. 

Since it has taken over the mines from the now defunct Acacia Mining in September 2019, North Mara and Bulyanhulu have been revived, returned to profitability and have the potential to become Barrick’s seventh Tier One gold complex, the company explains. 

It has also made significant progress in dealing with legacy social and environmental issues and is returning substantial value to its Tanzanian stakeholders.

And in 2020 the government received more than USD 370 million (TShs 856 billion) in cash inflows from the Twiga partnership through taxes, dividends and the first USD 100 million (TShs 231 billion) tranche of the settlement agreement. 

Barrick has also invested USD 800 million (TShs 1,851 billion) in the country’s economy, spent USD 2 million (TShs 4.6 billion) on community development and recruited 600 new local employees, with Tanzanian nationals now making up 96% of the mines’ workforce. 

Bristow said afterwards that the meeting had been a highly constructive one in which both parties had agreed that the success of the Twiga joint venture had demonstrated the value that could be created by a genuine economic benefit sharing partnership between a mining company and its host country. 

“I confirmed that Barrick was in Tanzania for the long term and that we’ll be using our North Mara-Bulyanhulu complex as the base for further investment in the country, which is highly prospective but still largely unexplored.  We see the potential for more world-class gold discoveries here but in order to achieve exploration success we need to keep turning over our licences and assessing new ground.  The process of acquiring new licences is ongoing,” he concluded.

Tanzania Gold

Tanzania gold reserves are estimated at about 45 million ounces. Gold exploration has been centered mostly on the greenstone belts around Lake Victoria, where several large deposits have already been discovered and are being developed.

Tanzania’s gold production increased by more than 700% over the past 25 years, from 5 to 40-50 tonnes per year, while South Africa’s production of gold decreased from over 500 tonnes in 1990 to 117 tonnes in 2018.

Canadian-based junior gold exploration company Winshear Gold Corp. (TSX-V: WINS) has filed its Memorial with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, outlining the nature and quantum of its claims against Tanzania for the expropriation of the Company’s retention licenses over the SMP Gold Project in Tanzania.

The Memorial provides the basis for compensation to Winshear in the amount of CAD 124,781,945 including interest that continues to accrue. 

Richard Williams, CEO of Winshear, commented “Establishing CAD 124,781,945 as compensation for Tanzania’s expropriation of the SMP Gold Project is a very important milestone for Winshear. Tanzania’s actions have rendered valueless years of investment in the country. We have made every attempt to work with the Tanzanian Government to reach an amicable settlement since they canceled our retention licenses but they have provided us no choice but to pursue the legal route.”

Background

• Between 2006 and 2017, Winshear acquired, explored and discovered a gold resource at the SMP Gold Project in southerwestern Tanzania.
• As of 2017, Winshear held four Retention Licences.
• In July 2017, the Government of Tanzania passed new legislation abolishing the Retention Licence classification.
• In December 2019, the Government of Tanzania put all of the area formerly held by Winshear under retention licences out to tender, thus expropriating the SMP Gold Project.
• In January 2020, the Winshear served notice to the Government of Tanzania of its intention to enter arbitration proceedings, triggering a 6-month notice period designed to provide Tanzania the opportunity to enter into discussions with Winshear to resolve the dispute. Tanzania did not respond during the notice period. 
• In July 2020, after Tanzania’s failure to respond to the notice, Winshear initiated arbitration proceedings with ICSID.
• The arbitration case is heard by a 3-person tribunal, and is expected to conclude in H1 2023.
• The Tribunal is constituted in accordance with Article 37(2)(a) of the ICSID Convention.  Its members are: Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler (Swiss), President, appointed by her co-arbitrators; O. Thomas Johnson (U.S.), appointed by Claimant; and Edward William Fashole Luke II (Botswanan), appointed by Respondent.

According to the Bank of Tanzania (BOT), on Monday 19th July 2021 the mean price of a gold ounce was TZS 4,187,045.075.

The buying price was TZS 4,1656,27.7359 while the selling price was TZS 4,208,462.4141.

Armadale Capital plc (LON: ACP) has announced the formal confirmation and receipt of the Mining Licence for its 100%-owned Mahenge Liandu Graphite Project in southeast Tanzania from the Tanzanian Ministry of Energy and Minerals.

The Mining Licence ML/007744/2020 provides the company with exclusive development and mining rights over the graphite resources at the Mahenge Liandu Graphite Project.

Armadale Chairman, Nick Johansen, commented: “Receipt of the 10-year Mining Licence for the Mahenge Liandu graphite project is one of the final and most important de-risking milestones for the company and allows us to push forward towards construction of our planned initial Stage 1 60,000 tonnes per annum capacity for the project [and] we are making positive progress in development funding options specifically a debt package for the project, the company is also currently in discussions with a number of potential finance partners; we are hoping to be able to announce some further progress with regards to these efforts and also with our offtake discussions in the near term.”

Graphite in Tanzania

Tanzania’s largest graphite deposits are located in the central and east southern regions of the country.

Graphite discoveries in Tanzania come mainly from Australia-based graphite developers, Magnis Resources (ASX:MNS), Volt Resources (ASX:VRC) and Kibaran Resources (ASX:KNL).

Active graphite projects in Tanzania include Bunyu, Epanko, Nachu, and Namangale.

East Africa-focused gold producer, developer, and explorer Shanta Gold (AIM: SHG) has recently provided an update on the construction progress at the Singida Gold Project in Central Tanzania, confirming it remains on track for the first gold production to take place in early 2023.

Construction of the Singida gold project commenced in October 2020.

Shanta Gold CEO Eric Zurrin commented: “The encouraging results of our grade control drilling at Singida reinforces our confidence in the strength of the production profile, especially for the first 18-24 months of production.”

The Singida Gold Proejct

The Singida project is an open-pit gold project covering an area of about 98 km2 located in the greenstone belt within the Ikungi district in the Singida Region of central Tanzania.

Total capital investment in the project comes at USD 26 million over a 24-month construction period. The investment is funded by Shanta’s internal cash flows.

Expected annual production is projected at 32,000 ounces over an initial life of mine of seven years.

Tanzania Gold

Tanzania’s gold reserves are estimated at about 45 million ounces.

Tanzania’s gold production increased by more than 700% over the past 25 years, from 5 to 40-50 tonnes per year, while South Africa’s production of gold decreased from over 500 tonnes in 1990 to 117 tonnes in 2018.

Current active gold mines include Buckreef, Bulyanhulu, Buzwagi, North Mara, Geita, Golden Pride, and New Luika (Shanta Gold).

Gold and nickel exploration and development company Katoro Gold PLC (AIM: KAT) has recently raised GBP 815,000 via the issue of new ordinary shares, to be utilized primarily to fund the further advancement of the Haneti Nickel Project in Tanzania.

In its press release, the company clarifies it intends to forthwith commence with a diamond-drill drilling campaign, and for working capital requirements.

The Haneti Project

Located in central Tanzania, the Haneti project is a polymetallic system with identified potential for nickel (sulphide and laterite), Platinum Group Metals, copper, gold, lithium and rare earth elements.

Katoro owns 65% of the project and the rest is owned by Power Metal Resources (LON:POW).

Exploration on the Haneti project has led to the discovery of two high-priority targets (Mihanza and Mwaka Hill) prospective for Ni-Cu-PGE sulphide mineralization located within an 80km long ultramafic belt.

Paul Johnson, Chief Executive Officer of Power Metal Resources plc commented: “Power Metal is eager to see drilling commence at the Haneti Project targeting a large scale nickel and platinum group element (PGE) discovery.  The Company is therefore pleased to see our partner Katoro Gold raise money for this purpose. We look forward to further announcements with regard to the planned drill programme and are working with Katoro in this regard.”

Nickel Mining in Tanzania

The mining of nickel in Tanzania is still in its infancy.

However, the country boasts the Kabanga Nickel Sulfide Deposit, one of the largest and richest undeveloped nickel sulfide deposits known at present, of unmatched scale and grade.

Mining exploration company Tanzanian Gold Corporation (TanGold) (TSX:TNX) (NYSE:TRX) recently released its results for the fourth quarter of 2021, highlighting the discovery of two new gold-bearing shear zones in the Buckreef West and Anfield Zones in the Geita District in northwestern Tanzania. 

Assuming successful exploration results from ongoing diamond drilling, both new zones and the Buckreef Main Zone have the potential to significantly add to the 2.0 million ounces of gold in the measured and indicated mineral resources category and 0.6 million ounces of gold contained in inferred mineral resource category.

Commenting on the discovery, Stephen Mullowney, TanGold’s Chief Executive Officer said: “We are very excited about the drilling prospects at Anfield and Buckreef West. The 1,000+ tpd mine plan only represents approximately 10% of existing measured and indicated resources. Consequently, we have considerable expansion potential, particularly in the Buckreef Main Zone ‘sulfides,’ which accounts for approximately 90% of our current measured and indicated mineral resources [and] I am extremely excited for 2022.”

Buckreef Gold Mine

The Buckreef gold mine, part of the Buckreef gold project, is located in north-central Tanzania immediately to the south of Lake Victoria and 110km southwest of Mwanza.

The Buckreef project area comprises the dormant Buckreef gold mine and four prospects with known mineralization: Buckreef, Buziba, Tembo, and Bingwa.

The Buckreef Project is fully licensed for mining and the extraction of gold and is developed by TanGold along with its joint venture partner, the Tanzania State Mining Corporation (STAMICO).

Development and exploration company OreCorp (ASX: ORR) has been granted a Special Mining Licence (SML) for the Nyanzaga Gold Project in Northwest Tanzania.

SMLs are granted for large-scale mining operations in which capital investment exceeds USD 100 million. They grant exclusive rights to the holder to conduct operations in the mining area for the minerals specified in the license.

The SML will be issued to the new joint venture company, named Sotta Mining Corporation Limited (Sotta), of which OreCorp holds an 84% interest through its subsidiary, Nyanzaga Mining Company Limited.

The Treasury Registrar holds the Government of Tanzania’s 16% free carried interest in accordance with The Mining Act [CAP. 123 R.E. 2019].

The SML will be issued directly to Sotta for an initial term of 15 years.

Nyanzaga Gold Project

Nyanzaga is a gold development project with a very large gold resource of 3.07 million ounces at a high grade of 4.03g/t gold.

Extensive drilling (2,665 drill holes for 276,911m of drilling) has defined this large resource and there is substantial potential for extensions of known mineralization both at depth and regionally.

The Project area is covered by 22 Prospecting licenses and applications covering a combined area of 210km² in northwest Tanzania.

The Project is situated in  Archaean greenstones of the Lake Victoria Goldfields, approximately 60km southwest of the city of Mwanza and 60km east of the Geita Gold Mine (AngloGold Ashanti) and 30km northeast of the Bulyanhulu Gold Mine (Barrick Gold).

Graphite developer Black Rock Mining Limited (ASX:BKT) announced it has signed the Framework Agreement (Agreement) with the Government of Tanzania (GoT) to jointly develop the world-class Mahenge Graphite Mine.

The Agreement includes the provision for a Free Carried Interest (FCI) which is required by law under Section 10 of the Mining Act whereby a 16% non-dilutable shareholding in the capital of all mining companies is held by the GoT.

Under the Agreement, the following structure has been agreed:
• A Joint Venture (JV) Company, Faru Graphite Corporation (Faru), has been established to develop the Mahenge Graphite Mine. Faru is the Swahili word for Rhinoceros. The Tanzanian Government will own a 16% undiluted free-carried interest shareholding in Faru, with 84% owned by Black Rock via its wholly owned UK subsidiary company, Mahenge Resources Limited;
• A Special Mining Licence (SML) will be granted to unify existing Mining Licences ML 611/2019 and ML 612/2019 and a part of Prospecting Licence PL 13752/2019;
• Existing approved Environmental Permits and Resettlement Action Plans granted to ML’s 611 and 612 will be grandfathered to the SML; and
• An exemption will be issued to Black Rock from the provisions of the Mines Act 2017 requiring SML developers to issue 5% of stock to local interests and listing of 30% of stock on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange.

Black Rock MD and CEO, John de Vries commented: “Reaching agreement with the Tanzanian Government including Free Carried Interest is a watershed moment for Black Rock. This enables the Company to rapidly move forward to deliver a new clean source of high-grade Graphite to a growing global market. Under the Framework Agreement, the Government of Tanzania will secure project economics through a combination of dividends, taxes and duties. Our commitment to Tanzania exceeds this through the purchase of goods and services, provision of power, rail haulage, and port services. It is estimated that the cumulative benefit to the Tanzanian economy will be USD 6.5 billion over the life of the project. I am pleased that the Company and the Government of Tanzania are now partners and we look forward to delivering on our shared promises, by building the Mahenge Graphite Mine that will bring significant benefits to Tanzania, and for global decarbonization markets driving clean energy storage technologies.”

Tanzania Graphite

As of 2019, Tanzania’s estimated graphite reserves stand at 18 million tonnes ranking 5th in the world after Turkey, China, Brazil, and Mozambique.

Tanzania’s graphite reserves are being explored and developed by Australia-based graphite developers, namely Magnis Resources (ASX:MNS), Volt Resources (ASX:VRC), EcoGraf (ASX:EGR), Walkabout Resources (ASX:WKT), and Black Rock Mining (ASX:BKT). Production stages have not been reached yet.

Petra Diamonds Limited recently announced that its effective interest in Williamson Diamonds Limited (WDL) is due to decrease to 63% and the Government of Tanzania’s to increase to 37%. 

In addition, the company has executed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to sell 50% of the entity that holds Petra’s shareholding in WDL to Caspian Limited-the long-term technical services contractor at diamond mine-for a total consideration of USD 15 million.

Caspian’s purchase will be funded through the settlement of USD 11.1 million of past technical services payments owed by WDL to Caspian, with the remaining amount being funded by Caspian rendering USD 3.9 million of technical services to WDL in order to ramp up operations at the Williamson Mine.

Richard Duffy, Chief Executive of Petra, commented: “We are very pleased to be partnering with Caspian, who brings considerable local and mining experience. This will assist us in optimizing the orebody for the benefit of all of Williamson’s stakeholders, both in the short term as we continue to ramp up operations and in the longer term to fully realize the mine’s potential in an improved economic environment. The reduction in Petra’s equity interest into WDL, from 75% to 31.5% while still retaining control, both reduces Petra’s exposure in line with our stated objectives outlined in our Preliminary Results while maintaining a share of the upside that we believe exists following the signing of the Framework Agreement with the Government who continue as partners.”

Rostam Azizi, Chairman of Caspian, commented: “Caspian is a wholly Tanzanian-owned company. It is also Tanzania’s largest mining contractor with over 30 years of mining-related experience. We also own the largest fleet of mining equipment in Tanzania. As a company, we are committed to adopting and adhering to the latest internationally recognized standards throughout all aspects of our business. We have been contracting at the Williamson Mine for close to 20 years and as such we are particularly pleased to enter into this next phase of our involvement at the mine as co-owners. We recognize its viability in providing sustainable employment and a significant contribution to the Tanzanian economy.”

The transactions in the MoU are subject to Petra and Caspian agreeing on definitive transaction agreements, including a share purchase agreement and a shareholders’ agreement, with the parties seeking to agree on those transaction agreements in early CY 2022. 

The sale of the 50% stake in the entity that holds Petra’s shares in WDL is subject to the parties obtaining all necessary Governmental, regulatory, and lender approvals, including approvals from the Tanzanian Mining Commission, the Tanzanian Fair Competition Commission, and The Bank of Tanzania, and a binding ruling from the Tanzania Revenue Authority on the tax treatment of the transaction. 

The parties are seeking to obtain such approvals by the end of H1 2022.

Williamson Diamond Mine

Williamson is Tanzania’s only important diamond producer.

The mine is an open-pit operation based upon the 146-hectare Mwadui kimberlite pipe, which is one of the world’s largest economic kimberlites.

Williamson is renowned for beautifully rounded white goods and “bubblegum” pink diamonds, including the 23 carats Williamson Pink (54 carats rough stone), which is considered to be one of the finest pink diamonds ever recovered.

Petra’s current mine plan for Williamson has a life to 2031, but given that the Mwadui kimberlite hosts a major resource of 37.9 Mcts, there is potential to substantially extend the Life of Mine (LOM).

Kabanga Nickel Limited, the UK company that is developing the homonymous nickel mining project in Tanzania, recently announced that BHP, a world-leading resources company, has invested USD 40 million into the project.

The money will be used to accelerate the development of the Kabanga Nickel Project, the world’s largest development-ready nickel sulfide deposit.

In parallel, BHP will invest USD 10 million into Lifezone Limited to advance the roll-out of its patented hydrometallurgical technology.

This provides a greener, lower emission, and higher margin product and will allow full beneficiation of metals in-country, and will ensure that Class 1 battery-grade nickel, copper, and cobalt will be produced in Tanzania.

Chris Showalter, Kabanga Nickel CEO, said: “BHP is the ideal partner for Kabanga Nickel, bringing significant advantages and expertise that will enable us to move ahead with the project. In addition, BHP’s funding support of Lifezone’s hydrometallurgical technology will drive progress towards a greener world. Through the development of Kabanga and Lifezone hydrometallurgical technologies, Tanzania will have a growing role in the supply of the battery metals needed to move to a global low carbon economy.”

Details of BHP’s Investment in Kabanga Nickel

The Kabanga project is currently owned by Tembo Mining Limited of which Kabanga Nickel owns 84% and the Government of Tanzania the remaining 16%, in accordance with current mineral legislation. 

BHP will invest, all in all, USD 90 million in unsecured convertible securities in Kabanga Nickel in two tranches: an initial USD 40 million, followed by a further USD 50 million on successful agreement of definitive documentation and satisfaction of certain other conditions.

The first tranche of USD 40 million will convert into an 8.9% equity stake in Kabanga Nickel (7.5% see-through interest in Tembo Nickel Corporation) once approvals and conditions are met.

Once invested and on conversion the second tranche of USD 50 million will increase BHP’s equity stake in Kabanga Nickel to 17.8% (15.0% see-through interest in Tembo), thereby valuing the project at USD 658 million post-money.

On satisfaction of additional conditions, BHP will secure the right to make a further investment in Kabanga Nickel subject to achieving certain agreed milestones.

Tanzania Nickel Production

The mining of nickel in Tanzania is still in its infancy. However, the Kabanga Nickel Sulfide Deposit is one of the largest and richest undeveloped nickel sulfide deposits known at present, of unmatched scale and grade.

The current project development timeline anticipates the first production in 2025. The output will ramp up to target a minimum annual production of 40,000 tonnes of nickel, 6,000 tonnes of copper, and 3,000 tonnes of cobalt.

On 24th January 2022, the Australian mining company Evolution Energy Minerals (ASX:EV1) who owns a prospecting license for the Chilalo Graphite Project, has appointed Mr. Phil Hoskins as Managing Director.

The appointment is part of a management restructure that sees Mr. Trevor Benson move from Executive Chair to Non-Executive Chair.

Commenting on the Chilalo Project, Phil Hoskins said: “The project is an advanced quality asset that is supported by a team with considerable graphite marketing, financing, and project delivery experience. Chilalo is strongly positioned for development, and I look forward to working alongside Trevor as we drive towards a construction decision by July 2022.”

This is why the company’s key focus is on completing the work required to allow for a construction decision by H2 2022.

Michael Bourguignon, Evolution’s Executive Director, Technical, will continue to manage project development, on-the-ground activities in Tanzania, and implementation of the company’s environmental, social and governance program.

Chilalo Graphite Mine Project

The Chilalo graphite project is located in southeast Tanzania, within the Mozambique belt, which is well known for hosting some of the world’s highest grade and coarse flake graphite deposits.

The Chilalo Project hosts a high-grade mineral resource of 20.1Mt at 9.9% total graphitic carbon (TGC) for 1,991 Kt of contained graphite, as shown in the table below.

On 17th January 2022, Evolution announced that following a period of engagement with the Government of Tanzania, prospecting license PL 11034/2017 has been confirmed to be in good standing subsequent to lodgement of a renewal application during 2021.

Mining exploration company Tanzanian Gold Corporation (TanGold) (TSX:TNX) (NYSE:TRX) recently announced that it has successfully closed a USD 7 million direct offering with a single institutional investor for the purchase and sale of 17,948,718 of the company’s common shares.

Rangold is focused on the Buckreef Project located in Tanzania.

The net proceeds from the offering are approximately USD 6.4 million that the company intends to use to accelerate the execution of its business plan that includes the continued buildout of the gold processing plant expansion at the Buckreef gold mine.

The plant is expected to be completed in calendar Q2/Q3 2022 and is forecast to produce 15,000 – 20,000 ounces of gold per year.

In addition, the proceeds will be used in exploration drilling with the goal of expanding mineral resources, discovering new mineral resources and converting mineral resources to mineral reserves, including the Buckreef Main Zone northeast extension, Buckreef West Zone and the Anfield Zone.

The Buckreef Project

The Buckreef Gold Project comprises four gold deposits namely Buckreef, Eastern Porphyry, Tembo, and Bwinga, all within 4km of each other.

The Buckreef Project is located in north-central Tanzania immediately to the south of Lake Victoria and 110km southwest of Mwanza.

The Buckreef Project is fully licensed for mining and the extraction of gold and is developed by TanGold along with its joint venture partner, the Tanzania State Mining Corporation (Stamico).