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5 Lithium projects in Zimbabwe you need to know about

Premier African Minerals (PAM)

The exploration company is listed on London’s Alternative Investments Market, which hosts smaller companies.

PAM holds the Zulu Lithium claims at Fort Rixon, about 80km from Bulawayo. Earlier this year, Zulu Lithium got one of 20 new exclusive prospective orders issued by the Ministry of Mines. This means the company can go ahead with exploration activities there, which have been delayed by red tape.

Zulu Lithium is believed to hold a 20.1 million-tonne resource base, with a grading 1.06% lithium oxide, considered a good grade by industry experts. A scoping study indicated a value of US$127 million for a 15-year open cast mine, producing both spodumene and petalite.

Premier has hired New York-based EAS Advisors to introduce institutions and funding. The company plans to fund a definitive feasibility study (DFS) at Zulu Lithium. This will help the company find out the actual resources it has, and how much it needs to mine them.

This year, PAM bought a portfolio of assets in Zimbabwe from Australian-listed Lithium Consolidated Mineral Exploration (Li3) for US$104 000. The 1500 hectares of licences are on the Mutare Greenstone Belt, close to the border with Mozambique.

PAM is headed by George Roach, a well-known figure in mining.

Kamativi Tailings

Once a tin mine, there are long-delayed plans to reinvent it as a lithium operation. This will involve treating the old dumps to search for lithium-bearing minerals.

The Kamativi Project is a joint venture between the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC), owners of Kamativi Tin Mines which holds 40% of the Project, and Canada’s Jimbata, which holds 60%. Disputes over the claim with a Chinese company have delayed the project.

The company signed a term sheet with Transamine Trading S.A., a Swiss-based off-taker, to secure US$9.5 million to cover capital costs of Phase 1 of the first phase of the project. A flotation plant to process Kamativi tailings had been expected in 2020, but was delayed.

The company believes there is US$1.4 billion worth of lithium in the dumps.

Six Sigma

Australian-listed explorer Six Sigma bought into Mirrorplex, which is exploring for lithium in Shamva. A drilling programme to find out the extent of the resource started in 2018. A report on the company’s website says that surface rock sampling have shown at least “five large areas containing extensive lithium mineralization” across the entire project area.

Six Sigma is headed by Patrick Holywell, while Mirrorplex is headed by its co-founder, Nyasha Chidoh. – NewZWire

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Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

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  • I would also watch Galileo Resources Kamativi Project - adjacent to the Kamativi Tailing Project. They are fast tracking it and the results to date look excellent.

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