Canadian firm acquires 3 Zambian uranium projects

By BUUMBA CHIMBULU THE acquisition of the mining licences of the three uranium projects in Southern Province expected to cost US$160 million by GoviEx, a Canadian mineral resource company, has been completed.

The works at the three sites - Chirundu, Muntanga and Kariba Valley - is expected to commence soon.

The company is expected to be producing 2.5 million pounds of uranium per annum once operational while creating about 300 jobs.

The company announced this week that the completion of its previously announced transaction to acquire the uranium mineral interests of African Energy Resources Limited in Zambia.

The Chirundu and Kariba Valley properties acquired as part of the Transaction include a mining licence, a prospecting licence, and a pending exploration licence.

The Chirundu mining licence covers two uranium deposits – Gwabe and Njame, containing Joint Ore Reserves Committee (JORC) mineral resources of 7.4 million pounds (Mlb) of uranium.

GoviEx’s acquisition of the Chirundu and Kariba Valley properties, combined with the Mutanga Project, represents a regional consolidation and will result in contiguous tenements of approximately 140 km in strike length.

This will include three mining licences, containing combined mineral resources of 15.2 Mlb of uranium in the measured and indicated categories and 45.2 Mlb of the commodity in the inferred category.

Under the terms of the transaction, GoviEx acquired African Energy’s wholly-owned Zambian subsidiaries, Muchinga Energy Resources Limited, which holds the Kariba Valley tenement, and Chirundu Joint Ventures Zambia Limited, which holds the Chirundu tenements.

In exchange, GoviEx issued African Energy 3 million common shares of GoviEx (the “Consideration Shares”) and warrants of GoviEx (the “Consideration Warrants”) to purchase 1.6 million common shares of GoviEx.

Commenting on the development, GoviEx executive chairman, Govind Friedland, said would now focus on completing a preliminary economic assessment based on the consolidated land holding.