By Wycliffe Njiragoma, Contributor
After 13-years of tremendous mineral exploration investment amounting to over $30-million and detailed geological exploration, Mkango Resources Limited is now on the brink of getting a signed Mining Development Agreement and Mining Licence following official Government of Malawi confirmation that the Mining Development Agreement (MDA) with the government would be signed by the GoM before the close of this year.
The UK and Canadian listed company has been developing the Rare Earth mining project at Songwe Hill in Phalombe.
A Mining Development Agreement is an agreement involving the government and a mining licence holder that governs the two parties’ legal, financial and technical relationship.
On Friday, 10 November, 2023 Minister of Mining Monica Chang’anamuno visited the Songwe Hill project where she expressed satisfaction with the activities that have been carried out at the site.
Her visit came after Mkango concluded all exploration works and completed and published a final definitive feasibility study on the Songwe Hill rare earth deposit as well as completing a full Environmental, Social and Health Impact Assessment (ESHIA) which was approved and signed off by the Malawi Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) in February this year.
“We are in the process of finalising negotiations for the MDA with Mkango so that the company can raise funds from banks and investors for the project.
“There are a few things that are remaining but before the end of this year, the MDA will be signed” Chang’anamuno said.
She then described the upcoming mining development as a milestone for Malawi’s economy considering its projected lifespan of 18 years with the potential to increase the mine life to 50 years and beyond.
“This project is going to help our nation especially the people of Phalombe and Migowi who will get jobs and various wealth creation opportunities. As a matter of fact, Migowi is destined to become a mining city where many economic activities will take place both during the construction and operation of the mine,” said Chang’anamuno.
On why the Mkango MDA has taken long to conclude, the Minister said there were some issues that needed to be cleared first stressing that the current administration wanted to be sure that no mistakes are made.
“Mining in Malawi is still in its infancy when compared to our neighbouring countries as such we do not want to make the same mistakes that other countries have made in the past. To that end, we have been learning the best practices on how our counterparts have benefited from the industry,” she explained.
Reacting to the news, Mkango Resources President, Alexander Lemon described the project as a real game changer for Malawi, Lemon commended the minister for sparing her time to visit and appreciate all the hard work that has been completed successfully over the years.
“We are very excited that the MDA is being finalised. As Mkango, we are very grateful for the professional support and advice that we receive from the Honourable Minister and her team as well as all Malawi Government experts from the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Justice and other government Ministries and Departments.
“We are very much looking forward to receiving the signed mining development agreement and the mining licence so that we get the project started as we strive to contribute to Malawi’s socio-economic development as soon as possible,” Lemon concluded.
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