Having recently received the mining licence for the TiTan tin and tantalum project, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tantalex Lithium Resources is now setting up the concentration plant and is aiming for the production of its first concentrate in March 2023.

For Tantalex, this means near-term cash flow, the company says in its October newsletter.

The company is seeking to take advantage of the position of tin in the global energy transition.

At current prices, TiTan would provide an initial yearly revenue stream of $24-million, and with the low-cost operation, an immediate addition of net profits, the company outlines.

It says that this will allow the reinvestment into exploration and development without the risk of diluting shareholder value.

“Tantalum concentrates, used in everything from cell phones to television sets, has a market structure that will [enable] Tantalex [to be] an important supplier of this critical metal.

“The company envisages having more of these plants in the region within the coming years,” Tantalex writes.

MANONO TAILINGS PROJECT

Meanwhile, Tantalex has appointed Novopro Project Development and Management to push on with the pre-economic assessment of the Manono tailings project, which is also located in the DRC. The assessment is targeted to be completed in early January.

“With a strong management team, led by Mr Mazie Rejaee with over 35 years of experience related to engineering and development and having led multiple projects from development to implementation, Tantalex are in good hands,” the newsletter states.

Tantalex expects to soon receive the maiden mineral resource estimate from MSA, with this to be the first of many updates on the mineral resource potential that the company has under its umbrella of projects in the DRC.

PEGMATITE CORRIDOR

Meanwhile, the first phase of the company’s drilling campaign on the pegmatite corridor has started and will carry on for a period of nine to 12 months.

It is planning an initial 8 000 m of reserve circulation drilling, followed by 9 000 m of diamond drilling.

“Tantalex has been in discussion with multiple Tier 1 companies in the mining and lithium spaces as the interest around the projects increases. The management team have given access to the data room to companies and will be requesting their firm expressions of interest by the end of 2022. Two of these companies have already had site visits with positive feedback from both,” the company says.