eBusiness Weekly
Business Writer
ZIMBABWE focused diversified mining group, Premier African Minerals, has procured a new ball mill from South Africa custom built for the Zulu lithium and tantalum project in Insiza District, Matabeleland South Province.
The new ball mill represents the last major item to be positioned and connected for a restart of production that is anticipated late next month.
Towards the end of last year, Premier announced that plant operations at its Zulu lithium and tantalum project, had been partly suspended to allow for civil construction to commence in preparation for the installation of the 55 tonnes per hour ball mill and other associated structures.
In an update this week, the mining group said: “By way of update on the Zulu plant, all components for the thickener are now either at site or on route.
“The final components and the ball mill are all expected to be loaded for planned departure for site on 29 January 2024.
“The mill is expected to be factory run on the 26 of January 2024 immediately prior to loading.”
Ahead of the planned production restart, the London-listed mining group, has continued to receive pleasing assay results for the Zulu project.
Premier chief executive officer George Roach, said assay results from the Southeast zone, which is under development but not part of the current pit operations, were pleasing.
“This Southeast zone appears to be Spodumene Quartz Intergrowths (SQI) dominant with more than 90 percent of the mineralisation associated with spodumene.
“ZDD165 is infill from our North pit (Main zone) and supportive of our conclusions to date.”
The latest assay results have shown heavy presence of spodumene — a rock that is a commercially important source of lithium.
The assay results include both surface trenches and drill holes located within the area of the mineral claims block, but outside of the existing mining operations and pit development.
Premier said its internal budgets (which have not been independently verified) predict an average production cost on a mine gate basis of US$800 per tonne of spodumene concentrate 6 (SC6).
“At present SC6 selling prices, and after an allowance for freight charges of US$152 per tonne, production at this point in time of basic SC6 standard product is marginally profitable.
“However, Zulu is expected to produce a low iron higher grade spodumene concentrate in the normal course from clean ore as previously indicated by Anzaplan in original test work, and as demonstrated in Premier’s laboratory at site.
“This spodumene concentrate currently attracts a substantial price premium which is expected to buffer the effects of the lower SC6 prices at present,” it said.
The Zulu project is generally regarded as potentially the largest undeveloped lithium bearing pegmatite in Zimbabwe comprising 14 mineral claims covering a surface area of 3,5 square kilometres, which are prospective for lithium and tantalum mineralisation.
Lithium is used in the manufacture of batteries and its demand has risen because of the demand for electric vehicles especially in developed countries that are forging ahead with plans to phase out fossil fuels like petrol and diesel in the next coming years.
The significant expansion in mining operations to facilitate delivery of ore with less country waste and to compensate for any residual issues with the sorters, together with the minor delay with the mill delivery, has further constrained Premier’s cash resources.
The mining group predicts that additional funding will be needed in the near-term.
Meanwhile, a technical team from Germany is at Zulu to optimise the sorters and in so doing facilitating the removal of waste material that previously led to contamination of concentrates.
A thickener is under installation and this is expected to complement the floatation circuit by improving the density and flow of slurry to the floatation plant.
