Open-pit Project
Regarded as one of the world’s biggest hard rock lithium resources, was granted the National Project status by the Zimbabwe Government in October 2017.
Our Operations
The ore will be processed using conventional beneficiation techniques, including gravity-based processes of dense media separation (DMS). The ore will undergo four-stage processing to achieve a sub-3mm crush size, which is ideal to achieve adequate liberation of petalite for primary recovery by DMS. Multi-stage spirals will be used to further recover the petalite.
The resultant material will be sent to the flotation circuit, following gravity recovery, for spodumene recovery. The spodumene concentrate will be dried and packed into bags and weighed after filtering.
Tantalite will also be recovered as rough concentrate through the application of wet high-intensity magnetics separation (WHIMS). It will be upgraded to a saleable product containing approximately 25% Ta2O5 by the use of conventional wet shaking tables. The tantalite product will be packed into 200-litre steel drums and sealed after drying and finally shipped.
The petalite products will be stacked to allow drainage and partial air-drying prior to being packed into bulk bags and weighed.
The Arcadia lithium project can be reached through the main A2 Harare to Mozambique highway or the main A3 Harare to Mutare highway.
Power supply for the project is proposed to be made from the nearby 33kVA national power grid, while surface and groundwater is readily available at the project site.
The surface water for the mine will be collected from the main catchment, with a spatial coverage of more than 9.18 million square metres.
African Continental Minerals agreed to supply power to the project from its Coalbed Methane Gas to Power Project, in August 2019, under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with Prospect Resources.
Arcadia Mine Reserves
The proven and probable reserves of the Arcadia lithium project are estimated to be 26.9Mt. Contained mineral is estimated to be 351,000 tons of lithium oxide (Li2O) grading 1.31% and 7.6 million pounds (Mlbs) of Ta2O5.
Mining and Ore Processing
The Arcadia open-pit lithium project will be developed in two phases. The first includes the construction of the mine and concentrator followed by further expansion in the second phase.
Conventional open-pit mining method will be used at the project. The ore will be processed at the 2.4Mtpa processing plant. Mining is proposed to be conducted in six pit phases, along with two satellite pits.
Products
Lithium
Lithium is used in buildings, bridges, paving, monuments, and many other exterior projects. Indoors, polished Lithium slabs and tiles are used in countertops, tile floors, stair treads and many other design elements. Lithium is a prestige material, used in projects to produce elegance and quality.
Gold
Gold is used in both internal and external applications. Further Gold has a translucent feature and it allows light to enter and give out a soft glow. Gold can also take a very high polish. Thus it is also used in making sculptures and other various rock or stone applications.
Quartz
Quartz is an important mineral with numerous uses. Sand, which is composed of tiny Quartz pebbles, is the primary ingredient for the manufacture of glass. Transparent Rock Crystal has many electronic uses; it is used as oscillators in radios, watches, and pressure gauges, and in the study of optics.