Namibia-based lithium concentrate producer Desert Lion Energy will ship its first consignment of 30,000 tonnes of lithium concentrate product through the port of Walvis Bay in Namibia, destined for China.
Tim Johnston, President of Desert Lion Energy, said Wednesday that the shipment is facilitated in accordance with the terms of its offtake agreement with Chinese lepidolite converter and offtake partner Jiangxi Jinhui Lithium.
Lithium concentrate is used in production of batteries in China.
“The delivery of the first shipment of lithium concentrate represents a significant milestone, which demonstrates the production chain is operational from reclaiming, sorting and processing all the way through to delivery of product to our offtake partner at the port of Walvis Bay,” Johnston said.
The consignment, which has already been delivered and loaded at the port, will generate gross revenues of approximately 3.8 million U.S. dollars.
According to Johnston, under the agreement, Jinhui is required to purchase all lithium concentrate product from Phase one of the company’s production plan, estimated at 150,000 to 160,000 tonnes of lithium concentrate for the 12 to 18 month period.
“Moving forward, we will continue to execute this phase of production, while moving towards the production of higher value products and large-scale mining in the second half of 2018/2019. In the process, we create more jobs for local Namibians as well as generate funds in revenue, taxes and royalties through our operations,” said Johnston.
Desert Lion Energy’s mine is located 20 km from Karibib, a town in Namibia’s western Erongo Region.
Meanwhile, according to the Governor of Erongo Region, Cleophas Mutjavikua, the shipment thus presents an opportunity to boost value addition locally.
Mutjavikua called on the private sector to meet government half way in adding value to products.
“While we can ship lithium concentrate to China, Namibia can also tap on China’s expertise to add value to raw and natural resources. This will be achieved through proper training and skills transfer,” he said.
The Port of Walvis has become a critical hub for trade. China aided development of the Walvis Bay Port Container Terminal by contractor China Harbor Engineering Company Limited, to addresses hindrances attributed to transportation and is expected to drive up trade. Enditem
