London, October 16th (Argus) - Australian key mineral developer Lindian Resources stated that the company plans to commence the production of the first batch of monazite concentrate at the Kangankunde rare earth project in Malawi in December this year.
During the first phase of the project, Lindian plans to produce 20,000 tons per year of monazite concentrate. The company has signed a 15-year purchase agreement with Australian rare earth producer Iluka Resources, which will be responsible for processing the concentrate from the Kangankunde project.
The Kangankunde project will produce a total of 55% rare earth oxide (TREO) grade concentrate.
Lindian is also advancing a rare earth processing plant project in Kazakhstan. The company stated that after the integration of this plant with the Kangankunde project, the goal is to produce 12,500 tons per year of rare earth concentrate with a total rare earth oxide grade of 92%.
The construction of the project's power infrastructure is underway and is expected to be completed by the first week of November. The remaining works and water supply infrastructure are also planned to be completed in November.
As of now, the ore inventory of the Kangankunde project has increased to 149,000 tons.
