TIDMMKA
RNS Number : 9361A
Mkango Resources Limited
07 June 2021
MKANGO RESOURCES LTD.
550 Burrard Street
Suite 2900
Vancouver
BC V6C 0A3
Canada
MKANGO TO CREATE EUROPEAN RARE EARTHS HUB IN POLAND WITH GRUPA
AZOTY PULAWY, POLAND'S LEADING FERTILISER AND CHEMICALS COMPANY
London / Vancouver: June 7 , 2021 - Mkango Resources Ltd.
(AIM/TSX-V: MKA) (the "Company" or "Mkango") is pleased to announce
that Mkango and Grupa Azoty Zak ady Azotowe "Pulawy" S.A. ("Grupa
Azoty PULAWY") (together the "Parties") have agreed to work
together towards development of a rare earth separation plant (the
"Plant") in Poland.
A new Polish wholly owned subsidiary of Mkango, Mkango Polska,
has been established and a highly experienced Country Director for
Poland, Dr Jaros aw P czek, has been appointed, together with rare
earth separation experts, Carester, and a strong team of technical
advisors and engineers.
Grupa Azoty PULAWY (Warsaw Stock Exchange: ZAP) is part of The
Grupa Azoty Group, the European Union's second largest manufacturer
of nitrogen and compound fertilizers, and a major chemicals
producer. Its products are exported to over 20 countries around the
world, including Europe, the Americas and Asia.
The Parties have signed an exclusive lease option agreement for
a site adjacent to Grupa Azoty PULAWY's large scale fertiliser and
chemicals complex at Pulawy in Poland, which provides excellent
infrastructure, access to reagents and utilities on site, and an
attractive operating environment, resulting in a highly competitive
operating cost position for the Plant, based on scoping studies to
date.
Located within a Polish Special Economic Zone, the site provides
excellent access to European and international markets. Production
from the Plant will strengthen Europe's security of supply for rare
earths, used in electric vehicles, wind turbines and other green
technology and strategic applications, and aligns with European
initiatives to create more robust, diversified supply chains.
Development of the Plant is expected to bring significant
benefits to the Mkango group:
o Higher value-added products with increased margins - targeting
2,000 tonnes per year of separated neodymium (Nd) / praseodymium
(Pr) oxides, and 50 tonnes per year dysprosium (Dy) and terbium
(Tb) oxides in a heavy rare earth enriched carbonate
o Greater integration - plant development fully underpinned by
sustainably sourced, purified mixed rare earth carbonate from
Mkango's Songwe Hill operations, with other synergies being
evaluated
o Increased marketing flexibility with a broader range of
potential customers - future opportunities to produce and market
separated heavy rare earths
o Catalyst for regional growth and the green transition -
potential for further downstream developments and related
businesses, including renewables, creating additional jobs in the
region
Engagement with financial institutions is underway to accelerate
development, and additional strategic partnerships, downstream
developments and marketing opportunities are being evaluated.
Feasibility studies for the Plant are being undertaken in
parallel with Mkango's Songwe Hill rare earths project ("Songwe")
in Malawi and other opportunities, including Mkango's interest in
HyProMag Limited, which is developing production of short loop
recycled rare earth magnets in the UK.
William Dawes, Chief Executive of Mkango stated: "Development of
this Plant will underline Mkango's unique positioning in the rare
earths sector. Our integrated "mine, refine, recycle" strategy,
encompassing sustainably sourced light (NdPr) and heavy (Dy/Tb)
rare earths from Malawi and rare earth magnet (NdFeB) recycling in
the UK, via our interest in HyProMag, is now enhanced by the
opportunity to create a rare earths separation and downstream hub
in Poland, working with one of Europe's largest chemical and
fertilizer companies.
"Rare earths are a vital component of magnets required in many
technologies needed for the green energy transition. Therefore,
their security of supply is becoming increasingly important to
governments worldwide, especially in Europe and the US. We have
carried out extensive due diligence on the site and believe the
development of the Plant in Poland will enhance the sustainable
supply of rare earths into Europe, as well as bringing significant
benefits to the region, creating new jobs and potential,
additional, downstream developments.
"We very much look forward to working with Grupa Azoty PULAWY
and our partners worldwide to create value for all stakeholders and
contribute to development of a more robust and sustainable rare
earths supply chain. "
Andrzej Skwarek, Management Board Member of Grupa Azoty PULAWY
stated: "We look forward to working together with Mkango on this
exciting project, which complements the adjacent activities of
Grupa Azoty PULAWY, benefiting from synergies in relation to
reagents, by-products, utilities and infrastructure. As an industry
leader in Poland, Grupa Azoty PULAWY welcomes this potential new
development to the region and will continue to support Mkango as it
progresses through the feasibility studies."
Jaros aw P czek, Mkango's Country Director for Poland stated:
"This is a very exciting development for Poland at a time when
Europe is focused on strengthening supply chains for critical
materials and transitioning to a greener economy. The creation of a
new European hub for rare earths at the heart of central Europe in
Poland complements battery, electric vehicle and renewable energy
developments in the region, with a site strategically located for
European trade and transport routes and benefiting from plug and
play access to reagents and utilities. I look forward to working
with Mkango and Grupa Azoty PULAWY on this groundbreaking project
for Poland and Europe. "
Pulawy Rare Earths Separation Plant
The Plant is expected to initially produce approximately 2,000
tonnes per year of neodymium, praseodymium and / or didymium (NdPr)
oxides as well as a heavy rare earth enriched carbonate, containing
approximately 50 tonnes per year dysprosium and terbium oxides. It
is also expected to produce lanthanum cerium carbonate. Mkango is
evaluating marketing and processing options for the heavy rare
earth enriched carbonate and lanthanum cerium carbonate. The Plant
will use best-in-class, conventional and proven technology, and
will benefit from excellent rail and road infrastructure as well as
the direct supply of the required processing reagents from Grupa
Azoty PULAWY. It will also have access to a local skilled
workforce, on-site engineering and project development expertise
and R&D science institutes.
Based on scoping studies undertaken to date, the Plant is
expected to have highly competitive operating costs.
Feasibility Studies and Technical Team
Extensive scoping studies and due diligence has been completed
to date on the Plant site. Further feasibility studies will be
completed by Carester, SENET (a DRA Global Group Company) and a
local engineering firm, Prozap, together with support from Grupa
Azoty PULAWY. The Carester team has extensive operating and
advisory experience in rare earth separation at industrial scale,
and will also provide ongoing technical support during construction
and operation of the Plant. Mkango is also working closely with
ANSTO to optimise feed specifications for the Plant.
Mkango will also be supported by its Chief Technical Advisor,
Mike Vaisey, formerly Vice President, Research and Technology, for
Lynas Corporation. Mr Vaisey has 25 years of international
experience in the mining and chemical industries, in senior
operational and technical development roles, with a track record of
successful technology commercialisation.
Development of the Plant is expected to be underpinned by the
sustainable supply of a purified mixed rare earth carbonate from
Mkango's Songwe Hill project in Malawi. Mkango will also evaluate
the potential to process third party feeds.
The feasibility studies for the Plant will run in parallel with
those for the Songwe Hill rare earths project.
The Company will seek to maximise the renewable energy content
and minimise the carbon impact of the developments in both Malawi
and Poland, as part of the feasibility studies.
Environmental and Social Benefits
In addition to synergies with the existing operations, the Plant
is expected to bring significant benefits to Poland and the EU,
including additional jobs and potential for further downstream
value-added developments. It is also expected to support the
development of a more robust supply chain for rare earths in Europe
and other markets, catalysing the green transition globally.
Sustainability is integral to Mkango's vision and the Company
intends to implement robust sustainability policies in Poland to
support the Company's ethos of actively engaging with local
communities as well as implementing and supporting community-based
initiatives.
Mkango Polska
Mkango has established a Polish subsidiary, Mkango Polska, to
develop the Plant and investigate other business opportunities in
Poland. The Company has appointed Dr Jaros aw P czek as Country
Director for Poland and to support the Company's growth in the
region. Dr P czek has been appointed to the board of Mkango
Polska.
Dr P czek holds a PhD in law and is a corporate financier by
training. Over his career in private equity, he led teams on many
high-profile projects and has sourced and managed transactions in
many different industries and geographies. Prior to his career in
private equity, Dr. P czek gained experience as the deputy general
director of the largest Polish mobile phone operator and as a
lawyer working for Hogan and Hartson, a Washington based law firm.
Amongst his various affiliations he is a member of the Chartered
Institute of Securities and Investment and a Fellow of the
Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
Scientific and technical information contained in this release
has been approved and verified by Nicholas Dempers Pr.Eng (RSA)
Reg. No 20150196 , FSAIMM of SENET ( a DRA Global Group Company ),
who is a "Qualified Person" in accordance with National Instrument
43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
About Mkango
Mkango's corporate strategy is to develop new sustainable
primary and secondary sources of neodymium, praseodymium,
dysprosium and terbium to supply accelerating demand from electric
vehicles, wind turbines and other clean technologies. This
integrated 'mine, refine, recycle' strategy differentiates Mkango
from its peers, uniquely positioning the Company in the rare earths
sector.
Mkango is developing the 51% owned Songwe Hill rare earths
project in Malawi with the ongoing Feasibility Study funded through
a GBP12 million investment by strategic partner Talaxis Limited.
Malawi is known as "The Warm Heart of Africa", a stable democracy
with existing road, rail and power infrastructure, and new
infrastructure developments underway. 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.
In parallel, through its 75.5% interest in Maginito Limited (
www.maginito.com ), Mkango is developing green technology
opportunities in the rare earths supply chain, encompassing
neodymium (NdFeB) magnet recycling as well as innovative rare earth
alloy, magnet and separation technologies. Maginito holds a 25%
interest in UK rare earth (NdFeB) magnet recycler, HyProMag Limited
( www.hypromag.com ).
Maginito's strategy is underpinned by offtake rights for
sustainably sourced primary and secondary raw materials from Songwe
and HyProMag, respectively, and is geared to accelerating growth in
the electric vehicle sector, wind power generation and other
industries driven by decarbonization of the economy.
Mkango also has an extensive exploration portfolio in Malawi,
including the recently announced Mchinji rutile discovery, for
which assay results are pending, in addition to the Thambani
uranium-tantalum-niobium-zircon project and Chimimbe nickel-cobalt
project.
For more information, please visit www.mkango.ca .
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, the Plant and Songwe. Generally,
forward looking statements can be identified by the use of words
such as "plans", "expects" or "is expected to", "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.
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, COVID-19 and other market effects on global
demand and pricing for the metals and associated downstream
products for which Mkango is exploring, researching and developing,
factors relating the development of the Plant, including the
outcome of the feasibility study, cost overruns, complexities in
building and operating the Plant, changes in economics and
government regulation, the positive results of a feasibility study
on Songwe and delays in obtaining financing or governmental
approvals for, and the impact of environmental and other
regulations relating to, Songwe and the Plant. 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.
For further information on Mkango, please contact:
Mkango Resources Limited
William Dawes Alexander Lemon
Chief Executive Officer President
will@mkango.ca alex@mkango.ca
Canada: +1 403 444 5979
www.mkango.ca
@MkangoResources
Jaros aw P czek
Country Director, Poland
JPaczek@mkango.ca
Poland: +48664144130
Blytheweigh
Financial Public Relations
Tim Blythe
UK: +44 207 138 3204
SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP
Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker
Jeff Keating, Caroline Rowe
UK: +44 20 3470 0470
Alternative Resource Capital
Joint Broker
Alex Wood, Keith Dowsing
UK: +44 20 7186 9004/5
Bacchus Capital Advisers
Strategic and Financial Adviser
Richard Allan
UK: +44 20 3848 1642
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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
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