Aim-listed investment company Armadale Capital has rapidly advanced the high-grade Mahenge Liandu graphite project, in Tanzania, during 2017, ahead of an anticipated decision to mine in early 2019.
This project, so far, has found high concentrate grades of up to 99.1% total graphitic carbon (TGC) produced using low-cost processing methods.
The company reported excellent flake size distribution and graphite expandability, highlighting Mahenge Liandu’s amenability to a range of applications, including the high-growth battery market.
Armadale reported a 25% increase in total resource to 51.5-million tonnes at 9.3% TGC, including 38.7-million tonnes indicated at 9.3% and 12.4-million tonnes at 9.1% TGC.
A scoping study on the project highlighted a pre-tax internal rate of return of 122%, a net present value of $349-million with a low development capital expenditure of $35-million and low operating costs of $408/t.
A feasibility study got under way this month and is based on the production of 400 000 t/y over a 32-year mine life.
Meanwhile, Armadale said an additional upside for the company is through royalty payments available from the Mpokoto gold project, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, following a sale agreement with a potential buyer that is anticipated to be finalised by the end of the second quarter.
The company’s active growth strategy remains on identifying and investing in African resource projects that offer prospective upside opportunity.