Name of the Project
Longonjo neodymium/praseodymium project.

Location
Huambo, Angola – 4 km from a modern rail line leading directly into the Port of Lobito in the Atlantic Ocean.

Project Owner/s
Rare earths developer Pensana Rare Earths holds an 84% interest in Longonjo through its 84% holding in Angola-registered company Ozango Minerais, which, in turn, owns 100% of the mining licence.

The Angolan government holds a 10% interest and the company’s Angolan partners the remaining 6%.

Project Description
Pensana has successfully delineated a near surface Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant reserve of 22-million tonnes grading 3.04% total rare earth oxides (TREOs) containing 139 457 t of neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxides, making it one of the world’s largest and highest-grade, undeveloped magnet metal rare earth deposits, with a mine life exceeding 20 years.

The mine execution plan is based on a staged development of the mine and processing facilities.

Initial production will be 20 000 t/y of a highly marketable clean mixed rare-earth carbonate (MREC). A proposed second phase expansion will result in production increasing to 40 000 t/y of MREC containing 14 000 t of TREOs, and up to 4 400 t of NdPr oxides. This equates to about 5% of the worldwide production of neodymium/praseodymium oxides a year for downstream processing or sale on the international market.

Initial feedstock will be shipped as a clean, high-purity mixed rare earth sulphate to Pensana’s Saltend rare earth oxide separation facility, in the UK.

Potential Job Creation
The project is expected to create 600 high-value jobs, of which more than 50% are expected to be allocated to young people.

Once in full production, the project will create an estimated 2 400 direct and indirect jobs.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Capital cost is estimated at $217-million, including contingencies, which Pensana claims is among the lowest for rare earth developments of this scale.

Planned Start/End Date
Main construction started in May 2025. Longonjo is expected to produce 20 000 t of MREC, starting in 2026, and 40 000 t of MREC from 2029 following the planned expansion.

Latest Developments
Pensana has advised that construction of the Longonjo mine is progressing on schedule and within the overall capital cost envelope of $217-million.

The main construction on the mine started in May this year, which followed preparatory site works that allowed for a streamlined construction programme.

Pensana has a five-year offtake agreement in place with Japanese multinational Toyota subsidiary Toyota Tsusho for the full yearly initial production.

Key project delivery partners include Pro-Process Engineering, Lycopodium Group and SRK Consulting.

In turn, SRK has contracted a specialist drilling company to define the final excavation profile for a tailings storage facility on site, which will meet the Global Industry Standards on Tailings Management.

The drill rig will be relocated to the Coola exploration area after completing its scope of work on the project. The exploration on Coola will test the potential for a deeply weathered and supergene enrichment central diatreme as is the case at the Longonjo carbonatite. Coola is located 40 km north of Longonjo.

Pensana plans to investigate Coola with an initial ten holes of between 30 m and 50 m deep to investigate magnetic anomaly qualities underground. Samples will be collected and analysed on site using portable XRF technology, following which mineralogical studies will inform a follow-up drilling programme.

The company aims to delineate the possible contribution of this deposit as a high-grade feedstock to the Longonjo processing plant.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
ADP (main contractor); MCC (main construction); NCP International (equipment); Bushtec (accommodation facilities); ProProcess Engineering (modular process units); Grupo Nov (contractor); Deugro (international procurement and logistics); Lycopodium Group and SRK Consulting (project delivery partners).

Contact Details for Project Information
Pensana Rare Earths, email admin@pensana.co.uk or ir@pensana.co.uk.