Modern Mining April 2018

MINING News

AfriTin completes mine design for Uis tin project

Reporting on its Uis tin project in Namibia, AIM-listed AfriTin Mining says that fol- lowing the completion of a mapping programme and construction of a 3D geo- logical model, it has undertaken a detailed mine design for the V1 and V2 pegmatite bodies, previously identified as priority targets to supply feed to the new interme- diary processing plant. The mine design includes an initial five-year mine production schedule to commence operations on the outcropping pegmatite bodies and existing excavations of the historical V1/V2 pits. This internal mine plan supports an overburden stripping ratio of less than 1 (overburden-to-ore ratio) and a fast ramp- up profile utilising conventional open-pit mining methods. Material will be liberated through drilling and blasting; loading and hauling will be effected by combining excavators and articulated dump trucks. The run-of-mine feed to the plant for this phase of development is planned at 500 000 tonnes per year with an antici- pated annual production of 800 tonnes of saleable tin concentrate (although at this stage, this rate is not guaranteed). The tar- get for the following phase remains 5 000 tonnes of tin concentrate per annum. A plant location has been identified in close proximity to the V1/V2 pegmatite bodies. The site layout and project infra- Goldplat, the AIM-quoted gold producer with international gold recovery opera- tions based in South Africa and Ghana and a gold mine in Kenya, reports that its subsidiary, Gold Recovery Ghana (GRG), has completed the installation and com- missioning of an elution plant and all associated ancillary equipment at its site in Tema, Ghana. When GRG’s Ghanaian licence to pur- chase and deal in gold was renewed in December 2016, one of the requirements of the renewal was that an elution plant be installed and brought into production by 30 June 2018. Elutions are now ongo- ing and the first gold was poured during March 2018. “I am very pleased to be able to report that Goldplat has completed this capital

View of the Uis tin mine in Namibia. It was operated by a subsidiary of Iscor from the 1950s through to 1990, when it closed as a result of a collapse in the tin price. AfriTin is adopting a phased approach to reviving the mine (photo: AfriTin).

“Whilst we believe Uis has the resources to be a long-life operation, this phased approach should provide a platform for sustainable early cash flows. It should also de-risk the implementation of a larger scale mining and processing facility which in turn should allow us to progress long-term project financing options. We remain excited about the project progres- sion and the long-term opportunity that AfriTin provides to investors in the world tin market.”  nally is yet another example of the benefits of having an experienced in-house engi- neering team. I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the engineer- ing teams as well as the GRG production teams on another job well done!”  Galane Gold’s CEO, Nick Brodie, com­ mented:“This represents a great opportunity for Galane and B2Gold to join together to target exploration in the Tati Greenstone Belt. The Tati Greenstone Belt is highly prospective and it is hoped with our large historic exploration database, which has identified numerous targets, and B2Gold’s exploration expertise that we will identify a significant resource.” 

structure is being finalised and earthworks and civil works construction are scheduled to commence during May 2018 with pro- duction on track for H2 2018. “We are very pleased with the results of this early production phase mine design work that has recently been completed,” comments AfriTin’s Chief Executive Officer, Anthony Viljoen. “Once operational, we believe this will confirm the potential of the Uis project as a world- class tin mine with low operational risks.

Goldplat installs elution plant

project three months ahead of the initial deadline and within our initial budget,” comments Gerard Kisbey-Green, CEO of Goldplat. “Completing this project inter-

Galane and B2Gold target Tati Greenstone Belt Galane Gold, listed on the TSX-V, has entered into an earn-in option agreement with B2Gold Corp. Under the agreement, B2Gold has the option to indirectly acquire, in tranches, up to 70 % of the shares of a newly incorporated subsidiary (Newco) of Galane Gold which has applied for two gold prospecting licences over an aggregate of approximately 520 km 2 located around Galane’s Mupane property, excluding its current operations and mining licences, near Francistown in Botswana.

April 2018  MODERN MINING  19