Kenmare meets production guidance for third consecutive year

10th January 2019 By: Tasneem Bulbulia - Senior Contributing Editor Online

London-listed Kenmare Resources, which operates the Moma titanium minerals mine, in Mozambique, achieved its production guidance for a third consecutive year in 2018 – delivering 1.37-million tonnes of heavy minerals concentrate.

The company produced 958 500 t of ilmenite and 48 400 t of primary zircon.

Shipments of finished products increased to 1.07-million tonnes, compared with 1.04-million tonnes in 2017.

“In terms of our development programme, in 2018, our focus was the 20% expansion of Wet Concentrator Plant (WCP) B. WCP B is the first of three development projects with the objective of delivering a sustained increase in ilmenite production to 1.2-million tonnes per annum from 2021.

“The second of these projects, WCP C, is well under way, with commissioning scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2019. The definitive feasibility study for the third and final of these projects, the movement of WCP B to the high-grade Pilivili orebody, is anticipated to be completed in the first half of 2019,” Kenmare MD Michael Carvill commented in a statement on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Kenmare expects its production for 2019 to decrease slightly, owing to an anticipated reduction in grade; however, ilmenite shipment volumes are expected to be maintained as finished goods inventory is drawn down.

The company has set its ilmenite guidance for the 2019 full-year at between 900 000 t and 960 000 t.