Aim-listed diversified miner Premier African Minerals has signed a cooperation agreement with MN Holdings (MNH) for the supply of mining and exploration machinery, as well as professional assistance with optimising Premier’s operations at the RHA tungsten mine, in Zimbabwe.

This partnership is a step towards the revival of the mine, which has been on care and maintenance.

Premier aims to re-establish production at RHA, with a technical and economic assessment proposing two production scenarios: underground production at 6 000 t to 7 000 t a month or underground and openpit mining at 6 000 t a month and 34 000 t a month respectively, with a plant processing rate of 40 000 t a month.

Premier CEO George Roach said in a release on Tuesday that MNH would help the company reduce the cost of operating a mining fleet, which helps the company to strongly consider openpit mining along with underground mining.

“I have completed two site visits with the management of MNH and the complete route to locate the equipment and the route to Walvis Bay for future export has been surveyed and approved. In situ inspection of the tailings to be reprocessed has resulted in agreement on necessary equipment and MNH will now start with mobilisation.

“MNH has also agreed to make available their professional expertise to assist RHA and will be the operators of the mining fleet. The potential exists to see further operating cost reductions flowing from the integration of MNH’s expertise,” Roach explained.

Meanwhile, the company said a 5 t bulk sample of underground ore was cleared for shipment to undergo detailed testwork.

During this testwork, Premier will look to optimise the concentrates in terms of grade and to understand whether or not any other mineral is profitably recoverable, such as copper.

Premier further confirmed that it had received an extension to the repayment terms of its convertible loan note valued at $350 000 from Regent Mercantile Holdings. The company entered into the loan on June 21 last year.

The payment term had been extended to March 31, from January 31, originally.