ASX-listed resources group Globe Metals & Mining has retained Portuguese multidisciplinary engineering group Mota-Engil to conduct a feasibility study on generating power for Globe’s Kanyika niobium project, in the northern Malawi district of Mzimba.
Globe’s African projects manager, Dries Kruger, says Mota-Engil will be exploring the feasibility of generating power at a mini hydroelectric plant on one of the large rivers near Kanyika. “The process is part of the definitive feasdetails manufacturing process portland pozzolana cementibility study for the Kanyika project and is of utmost importance because availability of electricity for the mine forms a crucial part of the feasiron ore grinding by vertical mill 2ibility study.”
Recently, Chinese Exploration & Mining Company (ECE) invested $48-million in Globe for a 53% equity stake in the ASX-listed company.
Meanwhile, all aspeball millcts of the feasibility study are now in full swing, including the environmental- and social-impact assessment (ESIA) process, mine design and infrastructure and power studies.
Kruger explains that the ESIA process is progressing well, with two rounds of public consultation meetings having been completed.
However, he says one of the biggest challenges is the design of a metallurgical process to economically extract niobium metal from ore. Globe has committed significant resources towards the development of an optimum processing process and currently has four programmes under way to ensure the best strategy is selected.
The company is also undertaking a bulk ore sampling programme at Kanyika, with the samples sent to laboratories in South Africa, Australia and China.
Globe is aiming to complete the feasibility study in 2012 and start production in 2014.
“We are optimistic about this project because the niobium market remains positive, with prices steadily increasing and predicted to increase further in the foreseeable future,” says Kruger.
Globe is also exploring for uranium at Livingstonia, in northern Malawi, and for rare earths at Machinga, in the south of the former British colony.