Name of the Project
Uis tin project.

Location
The Uis project consists of three project areas in the Erongo region of Namibia.

Project Owner/s
AfriTin Mining.

Project Description
Uis has a non-Joint Ore Reserves Committee- (Jorc-) compliant resource of 73-million tonnes grading 0.136% tin and an additional 2.7-million tonnes at 0.015% tantalum pentoxide. AfriTin has undertaken a detailed mine design for the V1 and V2 pegmatite bodies, previously identified as priority targets, to supply feed to the new intermediary processing plant.

The design of the proposed tin mine includes an initial five-year mine production schedule to start operations on the outcropping pegmatite bodies and existing excavations of the historical V1 and V2 pits.

This in-house mine plan supports an overburden stripping ratio (overburden-to-ore) of less than one and a fast ramp-up profile using conventional openpit mining methods.

Material will be liberated using drill-and-blast methods, while excavators and articulated dump trucks will be used to load and haul the ore.

The run-of-mine feed to the processing plant for this phase of development (Phase 1) is planned at 500 000 t/y, with expected production of 800 t/y of saleable tin concentrate. The target for the following phase is 5 000 t/y of tin concentrate.

The processing plant will be located close to the V1 and V2 pegmatite orebodies.

Other potentially viable metals include tantalum, niobium, lithium, beryllium and muscovite.

Potential Job Creation
AfriTin is recruiting operational personnel, with about one-third of the total planned complement of 90 people having been appointed, including the entire management team.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Not stated.

Planned Start /End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
AfriTin Mining has produced the first tin concentrate at the Uis mine.

This follows completion of the Phase 1 pilot plant in July.

AfriTin will now focus on ramping the plant up to its design capacity of 500 000 t/y of ore, which will produce about 60 t a month of tin concentrate by the end of the fourth quarter of 2019. 

Moreover, AfriTin has concluded an offtake agreement with Thailand Smelting and Refining (Thaisarco) for tin concentrate produced at the Uis mine.

The one-year offtake agreement enables AfriTin to sell its tin concentrate and secure revenue for the next 12 months, with an option to extend the contract.

The offtake agreement specifies pre-agreed concentrate deliverables, which are in line with the project ramp-up and design specification of the plant.

In terms of the offtake agreement, concentrate produced during the period of the offtake is to be shipped to Thaisarco in Phuket, Thailand, from the Port of Walvis Bay.

Further, AfriTin’s subsidiary, AfriTin Mining Namibia, has entered into a N$35-million working capital facility and an N$8-million value-added tax (VAT) facility with Nedbank Namibia.

The funding will enable the technical team to focus on a successful ramp-up to achieve the design capacity of the Phase 1 pilot plant at the Uis tine mine, in Namibia, as the company transitions into cash flow.

The VAT facility has been secured through audited VAT refunds, which have not yet been paid by Namibia Inland Revenue.

The N$35-million loan is repayable in full 12 months from the date of execution.

AfriTin, as the parent company of AfriTin Mining Namibia, and shareholder Bushveld Minerals, have offered surety for the loan to Nedbank as collateral in the form of a joint suretyship from AfriTin and Bushveld.

The Bushveld suretyship will be limited to N$30-million.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
MRI (buying station).

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
AfriTin Mining, tel +27 11 268 6555.