TIDMMKA
RNS Number : 3353H
Mkango Resources Limited
03 December 2020
MKANGO RESOURCES LTD.
550 Burrard Street
Suite 2900
Vancouver, BC
V6C 0A3
Canada
MKANGO COMPLETES RUTILE EXPLORATION PROGRAMME AND AWAITS
LABORATORY RESULTS
London / Vancouver: 3 December, 2020 - Mkango Resources Ltd.
(AIM/TSX-V: MKA) (the "Company" or "Mkango") is pleased to announce
the completion of an extensive hand-auger drilling and soil
sampling programme to identify rutile prospects within its 869
square kilometre ("sq. km") Mchinji licence (EPL 0544/19) in
Mchinji district, Malawi, held by Mkango's 100% owned subsidiary
MKA Exploration Ltd.
Four geological teams have completed 75 auger drill holes
containing 581 samples and a further 446 soil samples have been
collected from a soil sampling programme on a regular 500m sampling
grid with 21 soil samples collected from other points of
interest.
A map of the sample positions is provided at the following
link:
https://mkango.ca/site/assets/files/4775/20201202_Mchinji_sample_map.jpg
All samples have now been transported overland from Malawi to a
specialist assay laboratory, Scientific Services in Cape Town,
South Africa. Preparation of samples for heavy mineral separation
is in progress, following which detailed mineralogical analysis
will take place. The Company looks forward to updating the market
further once it has received and evaluated the assay and
mineralogical results.
The auger holes included a grid of holes centred around hole A6,
drilled in June 2020 to 8.9m depth, which produced nine consecutive
samples that contain between 4.10% and 9.01% total heavy minerals
(specific gravity greater than 2.95) and grade between 3.17% and
4.09% titanium dioxide (TiO(2) ) - see Mkango press release of 15
September, 2020:
https://www.mkango.ca/news/mkango-announces-rutile-and-ilmenite-discovery-in-malawi
Rutile Market
-- Rutile, anatase and ilmenite are naturally occurring titanium
dioxide (TiO(2) ) minerals, whose main uses are 90% for pigments,
5% production of titanium metal and 5% welding. Rutile is the
purest, highest-grade natural form of TiO(2) and is the preferred
feedstock in manufacturing titanium pigment and producing titanium
metal.
-- Finely powdered rutile is a brilliant white pigment and is
used in paints, plastics, paper, foods, and other applications that
call for a bright white colour. It has also been widely used in the
production of glass, porcelain, and ceramics, as it is a valuable
colouring agent. It can also be used to add colour to steels and
copper alloys.
-- Titanium also has specialty uses including in welding, aerospace and military applications.
-- Iluka Resources Ltd ("Iluka") reports that, when compared to
current deposits and operations, the industry is facing declining
grades and assemblages (the relative weightings of each mineral)
for future deposits being developed. Sierra Rutile in Sierra Leone,
owned by Iluka Resources Limited, is the only high-grade,
large-scale operating primary-source natural rutile mine in the
world.
-- The rutile market fundamentals are robust with current and
forecast pricing remaining strong. Iluka, in its Q3 2020 quarterly
review, declared a weighted average received price for rutile of
US$1,225 in the year to date, an increase of 7.3% over the
full-year 2019 price. The most recent market price is approximately
US$1,400 (source: FerroAlloyNet.com, 2(nd) December, 2020).
Scientific and technical information contained in this release
has been approved and verified by Dr. Scott Swinden of Swinden
Geoscience Consultants Ltd, who is a "Qualified Person" in
accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of
Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
About Mkango
Mkango is focused on developing the Songwe Hill ("Songwe") rare
earth deposit in Phalombe district in Malawi and is looking forward
to completing the feasibility study. Mkango's primary business is
exploration for rare earth elements and associated minerals in the
Republic of Malawi, a country whose hospitable people have earned
it a reputation as "the warm heart of Africa". The Company holds
interests in four exclusive prospecting licenses in Malawi: the
Phalombe licence, the Thambani licence, the Chimimbe Hill licence
and the Mchinji licence.
The main exploration target in the 51% held Phalombe licence is
the Songwe rare earths deposit. This features carbonatite-hosted
rare earth mineralisation and was subject to previous exploration
in the late 1980s. Mkango completed an updated Pre-Feasibility
Study for the project in November 2015 and a Feasibility Study is
currently underway, the initial phases of which included a
10,900-metre drilling programme and an updated mineral resource
estimate, announced in February 2019. In March 2019, the Company
announced receipt of a GBP7 million (C$12.3 million) investment
from Talaxis to fund completion of the Feasibility Study. Following
completion of the Feasibility Study, Talaxis has an option to
acquire a further 26% interest in Songwe by arranging financing for
project development including funding the equity component
thereof.
The main exploration targets in Mkango's remaining three 100%
held licences are, in the Thambani licence, uranium, niobium,
tantalum and zircon, in the Chimimbe Hill licence, nickel, cobalt
and chromite and in the Mchinji licence, rutile, gold, nickel,
cobalt, base metals and graphite.
Mkango also holds a 75.5% interest in Maginito with the balance
owned by Talaxis. Maginito is focused on downstream opportunities
relating to the rare earths supply chain, in particular, recycling
and other innovative technologies for the production of neodymium
alloy powders and magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines
and other industries geared to decarbonisation of the economy.
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
Certain information contained in this announcement may have been
deemed inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 until the release of this
announcement.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements (within
the meaning of that term under applicable securities laws) with
respect to Mkango, its business and the Project. Generally, forward
looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as
"plans", "expects" or "is expected", "scheduled", "estimates"
"intends", "anticipates", "believes", or variations of such words
and phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results
"can", "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will", occur
or be achieved, or the negative connotations thereof. Forward
looking statements in this news release include statements with
respect to the completion of the feasibility study for Songwe, the
potential for discovering high-grade rutile deposits within Mchinji
licence, the potential for a new province of rutile mineralisation
in the area of the licence and Mkango's plans for an exploration
programme on the licence. Readers are cautioned not to place undue
reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no
assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which
they are based will occur. By their nature, forward-looking
statements involve numerous assumptions, known and unknown risks
and uncertainties, both general and specific, that contribute to
the possibility that the predictions, forecasts, projections and
other forward-looking statements will not occur, which may cause
actual performance and results in future periods to differ
materially from any estimates or projections of future performance
or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Such factors and risks include, without limiting the foregoing,
governmental action relating to COVID-19, market effects on global
demand for the metals and associated downstream products for which
Mkango is exploring, researching and developing, the positive
results of a feasibility study on the Songwe Hill rare earths
project and delays in obtaining financing or governmental or stock
exchange approvals. The forward-looking statements contained in
this news release are made as of the date of this news release.
Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and
assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Additionally,
the Company undertakes no obligation to comment on the expectations
of, or statements made by, third parties in respect of the matters
discussed above.
The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved
the contents of this press release. Neither the TSX Venture
Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is
defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a
solicitation of an offer to buy any equity or other securities of
the Company in the United States. The securities of the Company
will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of
1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") and may not be offered
or sold within the United States to, or for the account or benefit
of, U.S. persons except in certain transactions exempt from the
registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act.
For further information on Mkango, please contact:
Mkango Resources Limited
Alexander Lemon William Dawes
President Chief Executive Officer
alex@mkango.ca will@mkango.ca
UK: +44 207 3722 744 Dr Paul Armitage
Canada: +1 403 444 5979 Chief Geologist
www.mkango.ca paul@mkango.ca
@MkangoResources
Blytheweigh SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP
Financial Public Relations Nominated Adviser and Joint
Broker
Tim Blythe Jeff Keating, Caroline Rowe
UK: +44 207 138 3204 UK: +44 20 3470 0470
Alternative Resource Capital
Joint Broker
Alex Wood
UK: +44 20 7186 9004
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms
and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information
contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an
anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services.
For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange
use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy
Policy.
END
UPDQLLFBBLLXFBZ
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 03, 2020 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)
Mkango Resources (LSE:MKA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Mkango Resources (LSE:MKA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024