Kuvimba
has
identified
a
lithium
ore
resource
of
38
million
tons
at
Sandawana,
the
site
of
a
mothballed
emerald
mine
formerly
run
by
Rio
Tinto.
That’s
sparked
investor
interest,
acting
Chief
Executive
Officer Trevor
Barnard said
in
an
interview
from
his
office
in
the
capital,
Harare.
“It’s
not
just
China,
but
from
other
nationalities
as
well,”
Barnard
said.
“We
are
working
on
a
structure
that
can
accommodate
a
number
of
possible
investors
and
those
investors
will
be
able
to
take
a
portion
of
the
resource
that
is
available
at
Sandawana
and
develop
that.”
Kuvimba
is
seeking
to
attract
investors
after
lithium
prices
steadied
following
a
boom-to-bust
period
that
left
an
array
of
stalled
projects,
scrapped
deals
and
production
cuts.
The
market
for
the
battery
metal
is
still
grappling
with
inflated
inventories,
while
prices
are
down
about
80%
from
a
peak
in
2022.
Mining
veteran
Barnard,
who
previously
held
roles
at
Anglo
American,
met
with
Cluff
Resources
last
month,
but
said
discussions
were
also
taking
place
with
a
number
of
other
potential
investors.
Kuvimba,
65%
owned
by
the
state,
is
undertaking
further
exploration,
with
the
CEO
expecting
to
get
close
to
a
lithium
resource
of
100-million
tons.
Zimbabwe
has
some
of
the
world’s
largest
hard
rock
lithium
reserves,
which
have
attracted
mainly
Chinese
investors.
The
company
plans
to
spend
as
much
as
$300
million
developing
the
first
phase
of
a
lithium
mine,
plus
a
processing
plant,
Barnard
said.
Gold
mining
remains
the
“crown
jewel”
of
Kuvimba’s
business,
but
the
firm
also
plans
to
revive
the
construction
of
the
Darwendale
platinum
project,
after
Russian
investors
exited
in
2022,
the
CEO
said.
Post
published
in:
Business