United Kingdom firm Cluff Africa, has signed a non-binding agreement with Zimbabwe’s sovereign wealth fund Mutapa to develop a lithium mine in the southern African country.
Cluff will be assigned a 45% share of licenses at Sandawana, founder Algy Cluff says, without disclosing financial terms.
Zimbabwe is seeking to attract investors after lithium prices steadied following a boom-to-bust period that left an array of stalled projects, scrapped deals and production cuts.
State miner Kuvimba Resources has said it has identified a lithium ore resource of 38 million tons at Sandawana in the country’s south.
“We can now begin to develop what we believe to be a world-class, high-grade lithium resource,” Cluff said. The company will start a drilling program as soon as it has signed a final agreement with the wealth fund, it said, without giving a timeframe.
Industry veteran Algy Cluff has previously invested in Zimbabwe’s gold sector, but is best known for his North Sea oil and gas company Cluff Natural Resources Plc — now Deltic Energy Plc. Zimbabwe’s wealth fund also holds gold, nickel and platinum mines.
Bloomberg
