Aim-listed African tin mining company AfriTin Mining ended its financial year on February 28 with its first material revenue of £5-million, up from the £69 000 reported for the previous financial year.

“The announcement of the first notable revenues is a monumental first step and a precursor of what is to ensue as expansion plans are implemented,” says CEO Anthony Viljoen.

With its flagship asset, the Uis tin mine, in Namibia, the miner produced 473 t of tin concentrate during the financial year, significantly higher than the 32 t produced in the 2020 financial year.

AfriTin’s production equates to 311.7 t of contained tin metal for the 2021 financial year, up from the 18.6 t in 2020.

The miner ended the financial year with cash and cash equivalents of £1.35-million, up from the £575 000 of the previous financial year.

In addition, AfriTin has placed 216.67-million ordinary shares to raise £13-million before expenses, while the remaining 2019 convertible loan notes and 2020 loan notes have been settled.

Viljoen says that, given the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic and the difficulties this presented, the AfriTin team managed to reach significant milestones in the pursuit of first notable revenues and development of the Uis mine.

“The robust balance sheet forms the basis from which AfriTin will grow and underpins our ambition of becoming a significant multi-commodity tech metals producer out of Africa,” says Viljoen.

He notes that, with tin becoming a new technology metal, and the demand for lithium and tantalum, AfriTin believes the economics of the historical operation have been transformed.

“We also believe the Erongo region, in which we operate, will become a globally significant metallogenic province for new technology metals, allowing for increased revenues and economies of scale within AfriTin’s licence areas,” says Viljoen.