Significant progress has been made in lithium mining projects in Zimbabwe 2.4 million tons per year

SMM: it is reported that (Prospect Resources), an Australian listed company, has made significant progress in its lithium mining project in Zimbabwe. The Arcadia lithium mine project, (Arcadia lithium Project), is located on the outskirts of Harare and is mainly used in electric vehicle batteries.

Vision Resources says the project will be the first large mining project under President Mnangagwa.

President Mnangagwa officially launched the Acadia project earlier this year, one of the billions of dollars in investment projects facilitated by his government since he took office in September 2017. There is also a $4.2 billion platinum project invested by Karo Resources, a Cypriot company.

(Arcadia lithium Project), Zimbabwe's most important lithium miner, is expected to go into production within 18 months of the completion of the financial financing agreement. It is reported that a group of development financing institutions have agreed to finance the project.

The Acadia project, located 38 kilometres east of the capital Harare, has also been approved by the status of special economic zones to enable Vision Resources to trade, operate and trade in foreign currencies and to retain these offshore funds.

Vision Resources says the status of SEZs is crucial because it enables the company to operate competitively, attract global talent, show lenders the ability to repay loans in hard currency and deal with customers around the world.

Arcadia has ore reserves of 269 million tons and a grade of 1.3 per cent lithium oxide. A confirmed feasibility study shows that it can produce 212000 tons a year.

In the first 12 years, the project will produce spodumene concentrate with 6 per cent lithium oxide, 216000 tons per year of low ferrite mica concentrate and 188000 pounds per year of tantalum concentrate.

Sam Hosack, managing director of Vision Resources, said the company had received a lot of support from the government and helped drive the progress of the project. This will be the first large-scale mining project to be launched in Zimbabwe after the fall of Robert Mugabe, and the Zimbabwean government is fully aware of the importance of the project.

Hosack said that Vision Resources greatly appreciates and appreciates the positive attitude taken by Mining Minister Winston Chidando (Winston Chitando), officials of the Ministry of Mines and government departments, who facilitated the approval of the project and legislative support, so that the project's development partners have confidence in Vision Resources and Zimbabwe.

Hosack said Vision Resources had conducted a wide range of fund-raising activities over the past 12 months and had a number of discussions with potential investors in the project.

"although the process is longer than originally thought, we are pleased to report that our efforts have resulted in a shortlist of promising and credible development finance institutions (" DFI ") who have critically assessed the Arcadia lithium mine project and have expressed strong interest in participating in funding the costs of projects related to the development of Arcadia," Hosack said. "

Vision Resources said it had advanced the discussion to the point where it believed that a consortium of development financial institutions would commit to providing adequate project funding through a combination of senior debt arrangements and share subscriptions.

Vision Resources says that while doing business in Zimbabwe is widely considered challenging, there are still big opportunities for exporters such as Vision Resources, which operates in special economic zones. The results of the final feasibility study (DFS) of 2.4 million tonnes per year highlight Arcadia as a powerful project and a key asset for the long-term supply of lithium.

After completing the feasibility study (DFS), Vision Resources said it had embarked on Arcadia optimization and value engineering to maximize the potential returns of financiers and shareholders.

"these initiatives result in the lowest operating costs, the lowest capital intensity, the highest return on capital based on IRR and strong returns for shareholders throughout the market cycle," Hosack said. "

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