Aim-listed Kazera Global has announced that, following consideration by the Regional Mining Development and Environmental Committee, South Africa’s Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR) has formally approved the application by the company's wholly owned subsidiary, Whale Head Minerals (WHM), for a mining right over Sea Concession 2A, in the Northern Cape.

Kazera says the granting of the 2A mining right represents the fulfilment of one of the key strategic objectives that was outlined by the new Kazera board in April and represents a transformational development for Kazera’s heavy mineral sands (HMS) business.

The company adds that 2A underpins the HMS resource base which will be mined and processed on Kazera’s behalf under the previously announced strategic partnership with South Africa AT Investments (SAI).

Receipt of the granting letter also represents an important milestone under the company's arrangements with SAI.

Following formal execution of the mining right, Kazera says a further $1.75-million will become payable to WHM and SAI will expand its joint operations into 2A.

The company says it is working closely with SAI to ensure timely operational delivery, with commercial production targeted for the first quarter of 2027 and production ramping up to a minimum of 10 000 t a month of concentrate by the second quarter of 2027.

The company has also reported that SAI has started the shipment of 30 containers of equipment from China required for the construction phase.

Working alongside SAI and its Chinese industrial partner, Xiamen Antai Zirconium, Kazera's ambition extends considerably beyond the establishment of an initial mining operation.

The parties intend to pursue the phased development of 2A into a large-scale, long-life industrial HMS operation, with the potential for substantially greater mining and processing capacity over time.

Kazera CEO Richard Jennings says the approval of the mining right for 2A represents the most significant milestone in Kazera's history and marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for the company.

Most importantly, he says the mining right gives Kazera the regulatory platform to begin unlocking the potential of an asset whose scale and quality have now been much more clearly demonstrated by the recent technical report.

He adds that the findings of that report reinforce the company’s belief that 2A has the potential to become a highly significant project for Kazera and for the Northern Cape.

Jennings says the company’s ambition is to pursue the phased development of 2A into a large-scale, long-life industrial HMS operation, with the potential, over time, for substantially increased mining and processing capacity, delivering sustained economic benefits to the region and significant long-term value for all stakeholders.

“Our partnership with SAI is fundamental to that ambition. This is not simply a funding relationship. Through SAI and its parent Xiamen Antai Zirconium, we have a partner with the capital, technical and processing expertise and established access to international markets necessary to help us realise the potential of 2A.

“Combining those capabilities with Kazera's asset gives us the opportunity to build something of genuine industrial scale.”

Jennings adds that receipt of the granting letter means that Kazera can now progress the remaining steps towards execution of the mining right. Once formally executed, this will also represent an important milestone under the company’s arrangements with SAI, with a further $1.75-million becoming payable to WHM and SAI expanding its joint operations into 2A.

He says the potential significance of that development extends well beyond Kazera and its shareholders.

Mining has played an important role in the economy and communities of the Northern Cape for generations.

Jennings says the company’s ambition, together with SAI, is to develop a project of sufficient scale to make a meaningful difference to local communities and the wider Northern Cape through employment, local contractors and businesses, skills development and sustained economic activity for years to come.

"The grant of the 2A mining right is, therefore, not the end of a long journey. In many respects, it is the starting gun,” says Jennings.

“We now have the opportunity, the partner and the platform to build something of genuine scale and significance, and I am enormously excited about what that could mean for the future of Kazera and the Northern Cape,” he adds.

Following receipt of the granting letter, Kazera explains that WHM will now work with the DMPR's Northern Cape Regional Office to complete the documentation and administrative requirements necessary for execution of the mining right.

In particular, the mining right over 2A now requires only formal execution by WHM's authorised representatives, in the presence of a public notary and witness, and registration with the Mineral and Petroleum Titles Registration Office in Pretoria in accordance with the applicable statutory requirements, before Kazera and its partners can begin operations.

The company expects this process to be completed within the next few weeks.

The company will update shareholders when execution of the mining right has taken place.

NEXT STEPS

Following receipt of the granting letter, the company says its immediate priority is to work with the DMPR’s Northern Cape Regional Office to satisfy the requirements for formal execution of the mining right as quickly as practicable.

As previously announced, Kazera has entered into strategic arrangements with SAI in relation to the funding, development and future production of its HMS business. Under those arrangements, $1.75-million is payable to WHM upon the formal grant, approval and execution of the 2A mining right by the DMPR.

Accordingly, execution of the mining right will represent both the completion of an important regulatory step and a significant contractual milestone in the company's partnership with SAI.

In parallel with completing the execution process, Kazera and SAI will continue the operational planning required for the initial development of 2A and the subsequent phased expansion of the HMS business, with the longer-term objective of developing substantially greater mining and processing capacity as the resource base is further defined.

The company says it looks forward to updating shareholders as the mining right progresses through execution and registration, and as 2A advances through project development and operational mobilisation towards the start of mining activities and, ultimately, as Kazera and SAI seek to realise WHM’s potential as a major, long-term industrial HMS operation.