Balama on track for Q2 start

PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Balama graphite project, in Mozambique, is on track to be commissioned in the second quarter of this year.

Owner Syrah Resources on Friday told shareholders ore mining is scheduled to start in May to allow for the commissioning of the primary crusher. A temporary laboratory will be established in April to receive grade control and ore characteristics samples from the mine.

The permanent laboratory will be operational by May.

The company further said overall process plant construction was some 70% completed by mid-March, with the project cost remaining within budget at $193-million.

Syrah in January increased the estimated capital costs of the Balama project from $185-million to $193-million, owing to changes in the final design, including concrete, structural steel and plate work.

The Balama operation is expected to produce an average of 365 000 t/y of graphite concentrate during its first ten years of production, to deliver free cash flow of $160-million a year.