Name of the Project
Uis Phase 2 expansion project.

Location
Namibia.

Project Owner/s
AfriTin Mining.

Project Description
The historical Uis mine was owned and operated by Iscor between 1958 and 1991 as a tin mine.

The Uis project comprises a total non-Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant mining reserve (provided for guidance purposes only) of 134-million tonnes of ore, which could result in a mine life of 14 years. The mining plan features a production rate of ten-million tonnes a year of run-of-mine (RoM) ore at an average overburden stripping ratio of 2.6.

AfriTin has set out to re-establish the Uis operation in two phases. Phase 1 is a low-capital, cash-generating initial production facility serving as a pilot for Phase 2, which is planned as a scaled-up version of the initial phase and the beneficiation process may involve dry crushing of the RoM ore and using sensor-based ore sorting once confirmed through testwork.

The preconcentrates from this process could then be treated through various wet concentration circuits to produce saleable concentrates. The tin and tantalum minerals could be preconcentrated using X-ray transmission ore sorting and concentrated through dense-media separation (DMS), gravity separation and magnetic separation. The lithium mineral petalite could be preconcentrated through near-infrared ore sorting, concentrated through DMS and cleaned through milling and flotation.

Mining will comprise conventional openpit methods using low-carbon truck-and-excavator combinations, and is planned to be conducted over multiple pegmatite orebodies from four to five pits concurrently. A zero effluent plant is planned to include dewatering systems for all concentrate and discard streams to aim for maximum water conservation and eliminate the need for tailings dams.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an after-tax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of $2.1-billion and an internal rate of return of 75%, with a payback of 1.5 years.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $440-million, including a 30% contingency.

Planned Start/End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
AfriTin Mining has reported that its lithium and tantalum infill drilling programme, conducted over the V1/V2 pegmatite at the Uis tin mine, has intersected pegmatite in all holes at the depths and apparent widths predicted by the geological model.

The 50-hole drilling programme aims to increase the confidence of the existing lithium and tantalum mineral resource estimates over the deposit.

So far, 47 drill holes have been completed and are being processed. The results of nine diamond drill holes were previously announced in June and July, with the assay results of the next 11 drill holes now received, comprising diamond drill and reverse circulation drilling.

The results of the remaining 27 drill holes will be provided when received.

The company has noted several significant pegmatite intersections, including 35 m at 0.149% tin, 77 ppm tantalum and 0.94% lithium oxide within drill hole V1V2032, from 150 m to 185 m; 25 m at 0.197% tin, 140 ppm tantalum and 0.60% lithium oxide for hole V1V2076, from 46 m to 71 m; 34 m at 0.186% tin, 116 ppm tantalum and 0.57% lithium oxide from 13 m to 48 m; and 0.92 m at 5.154% tin, 582 ppm tantalum and 0.32% lithium oxide from 5 m to 6 m for drill hole V1V2072.

For the pegmatite intersections reported in this area, the average tantalum grade is about 40% higher than the average of the existing mineral resource estimate, at about 119 ppm, compared with 85 ppm, while the tin grade is about 30% higher than the average of the resource estimate, at about 0.174% versus 0.134%, AfriTin CEO Anthony Viljoen has said.

He believes that the infill drill programme continues to deliver results that confirm the scale and quality of the deposit.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
AfriTin Mining, email info@afritinmining.com.
Tavistock, on behalf of Afritin Mining, tel +44 (0) 207 920 3150 or email afritin@tavistock.co.uk.