AMN - TANZANIA: Lindian granted bauxite licences

The Tanzania Mining Commission has granted Lindian Resources three mining licences covering the Lushoto Bauxite Project in Tanzania. The licences cover an area of 53.2 square kilometres and include the high-grade, low-silica Magamba bauxite deposit.

Previous rock chip sampling by Lindian at Magamba returned average alumina levels of 54% and less than 1% average of reactive silica and other deleterious elements, including iron, silica and titanium.

Exploration is already underway and the company will undertake an auger drilling program while in discussions with potential farm-in and strategic offtake partners.

Lindian's chairman Asimwe Kabunga said the granted tenements were an outstanding development for the company and added considerable value to its portfolio.

“We have wasted no time, with exploration work to commence this week and a low-cost, high-impact auger drilling program also scheduled to be undertaken this quarter.

“This is not distracting us from our key focus – being the development of the Kangankunde Rare Earths Project in Malawi.

“The granting of the exploration licence in respect of the Kangankunde Rare Earths Project will be another key value event for the company."

Lindian has a dedicated technical team in Tanzania ready to work across projects in both countries.

Ongoing field activities have mapped bauxite mineralisation to the northwest of the Magamba deposit, increasing the size of the deposit to a strike length of more than 2km.

Mapping of the mineralisation was conducted concurrently with rock chip sampling which confirmed outcropping bauxite mineralisation.

Critical infrastructure is already in place including access to sealed roads and rail line. Magamba is 7km from the township of Lushoto and 154km from the deepwater port of Tanga.

The Lushoto project’s bauxite mineralisation was formed by deep weathering of metamorphic rocks of the Mozambique Belt that are exposed in eastern Tanzania.

A report by the University of Dar es Salaam in 2003 confirmed bauxite mineralisation between 40-60% at Lushoto based on historical drilling data and surface geological mapping.

www.lindianresources.com.au