PERTH (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Globe Metals & Mining has increased its footprint in Malawi with the acquisition of the Salambidwe rare-earths project.

The Salambidwe project is located on the border with Mozambique, with about 85% of the project falling inside Malawi. The project is about 6 km in diameter, and dominated by syenite and nepheline syenite, with a core of agglomerative rocks.

Airborne radiometric data showed that the complex had elevated thorium and uranium levels, which Globe said were potential indicators of rare-earth mineralisation.

The syenitic rock types were also known to be favourable hosts for heavy rare-earth elements.

“While this is a grass-roots project, the Salambidwe ring complex has all the ingredients to host rare-earth mineralisation,” said Globe executive director for exploration, Dr Julian Stephens.

“This acquisition enhances the company’s rare-earths project footprint in Africa,” he added.

Stephens said that Globe would start field work at Salambidwe in the third quarter of the year.

Globe’s flagship project is the multicommodity Kanyika niobium project, in Malawi, where production would start in 2013, at an initial rate of 3 000 t/y niobium metal.

Globe was earning an 80% interest in the Machinga rare-earths project, also in Malawi, from fellow Australia-listed Resource Star.

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