PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Graphite developer Walkabout Resources is hoping to secure binding offtake agreements for its 40 000 t/y Lindi Jumbo graphite project, in Tanzania, before the end of the second quarter.
Walkabout executive director Trevor Benson told delegates at Paydirt’s Battery Minerals conference that the company had a number of non-binding agreements in place with potential offtake partners in both China and Germany, and would now work to convert these to binding offtake agreements.
Possible offtake partners have also been identified in Japan, Benson said.
“In terms of offtake, we need to have a line of sight in order to secure funding. We originated these agreements a while ago, and will now work to make them binding agreements,” he added.
A recent enhanced definitive feasibility study into the Lindi Jumbo project increased the projected mine life by four years, to 24 years, while increasing the projected life-of-mine revenues from $1.18-billion to $1.4-billion, and the earnings before interest, taxes, deprecation and amortisation from $886-million to $1-billion over the life of the mine.
The project’s pre-production capital cost requirements have decreased from $29.7-million to $27.8-million, while the pre-tax net present value has increased from $302-million to $335-million, while the internal rate of return has increased from 108% to 142%.
However, life-of-mine operating costs have also increased from $267.5-million to $334.1-million, with the additional four-year mine life.