Malawi fertiliser manufacturer Optichem is conducting phosphate trial mining at its Tundulu deposit, in the southern district of Phalombe.

Production manager Samuel Synoden reports that Optichem embarked on the trials in mid-2008, after acquiring a concessionary licence for the deposit, which contains an estimated reserve of 1,5-million tons of phosphate.

He says Optichem is optimistic that the phosphate production venture will help lower the skyrocketing costs of chemical fertilisers in Malawi, an agro-based economy.

“The current high fertiliser prices have affected everybody worldwide. “This problem has been compounded by the high cost of importation of raw materials for the production of fertiliser.

“We hope the availability of locally sourced phosphate will reduce the price of fertiliser in Malawi by 33% or more,” says Synoden.

He adds that the trial mining will assist Optichem in deter- mining the mining method to be used.

The Tundulu phosphate deposit has been scrutinised by a number of entities before, including Malawi’s Geological Survey Department, which carried out geomapping and reserve estimation exercises in 1968.

Under a bilateral arrangement, French company BRGM conducted geomapping and trenching in 1986, while Japanese firm Mindeco carried out geomapping and drilling exercises in 1987.

The disbanded investment arm of the Malawi government, the Malawi Development Corporation, with support from the European Union’s Centre for the Development of Enterprises, also undertook a feasibility study into the phosphate project in 2001.

The results of the studies, besides other things, indicated that the deposit contained an average of 17,5% phosphate.
The deposit was also found to contain sizeable quantities of rare-earth minerals.

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