Zambia: $1.5m Set Aside for Mwambashi Mine

Zambia: $1.5m Set Aside for Mwambashi Mine

TEAL Exploration Mining has set aside US $1.5 million to be spent on the advancement of Mwambashi Mine, including a de-watering programme to pave way for the opening of the mine.

Rick Menell, TEAL’s president and chief executive officer said in a statement yesterday that the company’s largest copper asset, Konkola North, had also advanced in its feasibility study.

“We are moving as fast as possible and are currently installing a winder, in a shaft that we inherited when we acquired the property, to access existing underground workings so as to know the underground conditions and costs required to start mining.

“We have also made good progress at the Mwambashi copper project with the technical part of the feasibility study for the 12,000 tonnes per annum copper producer having been completed,” Mr Mennel said.

He said the company’s priority was to achieve a satisfactory off-take agreement, complete the permitting process and conclude an optimum financing plan so that a go-ahead decision could be made on the establishment of the new mine.

On the Konkola Project, Mr Mennel said the feasibility study to assess the mining of the south and east limb areas was on schedule.

Murray and Roberts Cementation were conducting an assessment of the shaft as well as surface and underground infrastructure.

Access to the existing underground workings would provide an indication of the capital required for re-equipping the shaft and related infrastructure.

The results of this study were positive, subject to achieving a favorable off-take arrangement with a third-party Zambian company with whom Teal was currently in discussion, as well as a successful financing plan, and final permitting.

Management anticipated that mine site establishment and open-pit pre-stripping would commence during 2007, followed by the build-up to full production.

The application for the conversion of part of the large-scale prospecting licence into a large-scale mining licence had been submitted to the ministry of Mines and Minerals Development.

Copyright © 2006 The Times of Zambia. All rights reserved.

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