Name of the Project
RHA tungsten project.

Location
The project is located near Hwange, in Zimbabwe.

Client
Premier African Minerals holds 49% of RHA Tungsten, with the remaining 51% held by Zimbabwe’s National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Fund.

Project Description
The 1 800 ha project is divided into 50 mineable mineral blocks, of which Premier African Minerals owns ten.

The preliminary economic assessment (PEA) on the project was completed in August 2013.

The mine plan presented in the PEA consists of an openpit, followed by an underground operation, with a combined life-of-mine (LoM) of six years at a run-of-mine production rate of 192 000 t/y, or 16 000 t/m.

The underground mine produces a wolframite concentrate that is measured in metric ton units (mtu); wolframite consists primarily of ferberite, with a smaller quantity of hubnerite.

Every mtu of concentrate is equivalent to 10 kg of tungsten trioxide contained in a concentrate at about 60%.

Premier Mining has since the completion of the PEA commissioned Bara Consulting to update the financial model of the project to demonstrate the effect of the additional work that has been completed since the publication of the PEA on the product valuation. The financial model outlines a low-capital implementation strategy.

Jobs to be Created
The project boasts entirely local skills, with no expatriates employed at the mine.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Bara’s financial model reflects a pretax net present value of $15.8-million and an annualised internal rate of return of 286%, calculated on a quarterly basis.

Value
The project preproduction capital has been reduced from $4.77-million to $4.15-million.

Duration
Operations at the mine started in August 2016.

Latest Developments
Premier African Minerals has raised £1.02-million, through the placement of 536-million shares, to complete the construction and optimisation of its RHA tungsten mine.

Once complete, the company expects the mine’s second-quarter throughput to increase steadily to the monthly production target of 7 500 t. This will generate a monthly net positive cash flow of $200 000.

In the third quarter, plant and sorter recoveries are expected to be further optimised and underground mining rates are expected to have improved, together with an expectation that the openpit operations will start to deliver ore at the resource model grade of 2.4 kg/t.

The implementation and commissioning of the redesigned crushing, screening and ore upgrade circuits are scheduled for completion on February 28. Thereafter, processing is expected to resume, and initial optimisation of the X-ray transmission sorter and ore sizing screens will take place during March.

During this time, the plant is expected to begin to produce wolframite and will start generating revenue.

"Bringing RHA into production has been a challenge but our team is confident that this project time line is achievable and the market guidance provided is realistic.

“. . . this placing will mean that RHA is fully funded through to production. RHA's indebtedness to Premier becomes repayable as and when RHA commences commercial production,” CEO George Roach has said.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Bara Consulting (updated financial model).

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Premier African Minerals, tel +27 100 201 281 or email info@premierafricanminerals.com.