The first consignment of on-specification graphite concentrate from energy minerals developer Walkabout Resources’ Lindi Jumbo graphite mine in Tanzania, has been produced and shipped to Dar es Salaam for metals and minerals trader Wogen under the exclusive offtake agreement of mid-2022.

This first sale forms part of a larger order from an end customer in Europe.

Walkabout also reports that road access to both ports servicing the mine is now available after the recent cyclone that occurred in the region.

“The successful production of on-spec, saleable product during the commissioning process at the Lindi Jumbo plant facility is an exciting milestone . . . We now have the opportunity to engage with more end-users as we continue to demonstrate we have a viable product and that we are serious contenders in development of non-Chinese graphite supply,” says Walkabout MD and CEO Andrew Cunningham.

In addition, Walkabout reports that all sections of its Lindi Jumbo plant have been commissioned for this first consignment, with the priority commissioning team ongoingly focusing on increasing plant availability to run the entire circuit on a more continuous basis, while simultaneously and steadily increasing throughput to reach the planned production volume of 40 000 t/y, he adds.

Having the plant available and operating for an entire 12-hour shift has been an important milestone during the commissioning and ramp-up period, Walkabout emphasises.

Issue of the plant’s final completion certificate by engineering, procurement and construction contractor Jinpeng will occur once the required throughput tonnages are achieved and sustained for a period of 48 hours.

Once signed off, the plant will be handed over to the operating team to continue the ramp up over the coming months, while a number of processing and maintenance specialists from Jinpeng will remain on site for as long as required.

Once the throughput targets have been met, the team will turn its attention to the end-to-end optimisation of processing circuits to consistently achieve customer product specifications.

Logistics efficiency is also a focus, with bagged on-specification product accumulated in the load-out area ready to be transported to port.

Currently, any product not meeting specification is reprocessed as determined by the Lindi Jumbo on-site laboratory.

Meanwhile, with the biggest production cost for Lindi Jumbo being its use of power, the company reports that while the operation has 4 MW of installed diesel generated backup power available, it was not required at all during May.

Walkabout notes that having the plant run fully on grid power lowers the overall power cost by about 80%.

In addition, with the successful commissioning of the burner for the rotary dryer, Walkabout’s operations team has been able to successfully run the dryer at a lower temperature while still meeting requisite moisture levels in the graphite concentrate. This has resulted in dryer fuel savings of more than 50%.

If these experiences are sustained into the future, the company reports that the results will reflect meaningful reductions to plant operating costs.