Longatshimo River
The Longatshimo Project is situated within the Tshikapa Diamond Field of the West Kasai Region of the DRC in the Kasai-Occidental Province, within the Congo-Angola diamond province. The Tshikapa Diamond Field lies directly downstream of the alluvial diamond fields of the Lucapa Graben in northeastern Angola.
IGE has seven exploration and small mine permits in the Tshikapa Diamond Field of the Kasai Occidental Province. The Longatshimo Project comprises three permitsOf which two are exploitation permits (PEPM) and the third is in the final stage of being converted to an exploitation permit. Technical approval for this permit transformation has been received and is awaiting signature by the Minister of Mines. All permits straddle the Longatshimo River.
Status
- Advanced exploration completed in December 2007
- Bulk sampling since March 2008
- Indicated resources of 0.5M carats and an inferred resource of 3M carats
- Resource has been independently verified for IR 43-101 purposes
- Bulk sampling indicated large areas with grades of more than 3ct/100m3
- USD 11 million already invested
- Planning to commence pilot-mining operations early 2011. Estimated CAPEX of USD 4.1 million to reach 3,000 cts/mth
- Preparing to move into commercial mining by end of 2011. 5,000 carats/month based on additional investment of USD 2.8 million
- Expected OPEX of approx. 100 USD/carat
- Attractive fiscal terms
- The mining authorities of the Democratic Republic of Congo have completed the conversion of IGE’s diamond prospecting license on the Longatshimo River, to an exploitation and small mining licence with a validity of 10 years.
• 739 exploration pits up to 12m deep
• 97 Tractor mounted auger holes
• 190 Mega pits (10m x 10m), with diamonds recovered by Jig
• 9 Bulk samples treating 160 000 m3 in 50 tph Pilot Plant, comprising scrubber, 20tph DMS, Grease belt recovery and earth moving equipment
• Total of 200 000 m3 gravel treated (ca 500 000 t)
• Resource of 4.29 Million carats (inferred, Indicated and additional)
IGE divests Longatshimo diamond project more info
Longatshimo Project overview
Legal Aspects and Tenure
A local company in the name of Efidium DRC sprl was established in Kinshasa in 2007. This company is a wholly owned subsidiary of IGE which has a 100% interest in all permits.Original licence holders have a 7% royalty on all diamond profit after costs. All permits are in good standing with stable legal tenure and totally compliant with the DRC Mining Code.
History
Production from the diamond field was dominated by the Belgian company Societe Internationale Forestiere et Miniere du Congo ("Forminiere’) until independence in the early 1960’s. Since then, official records of production are sketchy and unreliable as artisanal miners took control of mining in the area. Historical production from the diamond field was primarily sourced from active rivers and alluvial terraces along the river banks and, to a lesser extent, from the Kwango Formation conglomerates
Exploration and Evaluation
Exploration along the Longatshimo River commenced in 2006. A number of permits were assessed and acquired for further evaluation. Initial exploration was conducted on these permits to evaluate their economic potential. This enabled IGE to acquire the best permits and relinquish those of lesser potential value. Three historically and potentially economical permits were secured.
Initial exploration involved the systematic , pitting, sampling, drilling, mapping and classifying various river, floodplain and terrace gravels. In addition to over a thousand jimbo pits, one hundred and seventy large mega pits were dug and logged. The aim of the initial exploration programme was to identify target areas with sufficient gravels to be classified as inferred resources and more specifically to identify follow up targets for the bulk sampling programme. A bulk sampling plant consisting of a 25 ton per hour Dense Media Separation plant and associated equipment with a hands free grease belt recovery was set up and commissioned on site by mid February 2008. Ten Bulk sampling terrace areas have been exploited with the main focus on Area 8, where 26 adjacent large individual bulk samples were taken and processed. This has resulted in the delineation of a potential initial mining area with an estimated 52,000 carats at an average grade of 0.33cts/m3 and overburden of 4.6m.
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The bulk sampling results to date are very encouraging, indicating that the area could support a mine under normal diamond market conditions. The bulk sampling operation in this highly prospective area was temporarily suspended in March 2009 due to the dramatic drop in rough diamond prices and the economic downturn. IGE is now ready to scale up to pilot mining at Longatshimo, with rapid expansion to commercial operations.
A regional exploration programme will also continue in the DRC with the aim of increasing the resource base. In November 2008 and February 2009 four separate parcels of diamonds were sent to Kinshasa for evaluation and Kimberley certification. These parcels attained an average evaluation price of $190/ct in Kinshasa by the official CEEC (Centre D’ Evaluation D’Expertise et de Certification). The parcels were sent to Antwerp and were held in storage awaiting sale by tender when the price of rough diamonds improved. A slight improvement in the market was forecast and a sale was conducted in mid May 2009. The total parcel of 3710 carats achieved an average price of 117$/ct which was quite acceptable during this depressed market and represented approximately 65% of the target price of US$180 per carat.
Local geology
The local geology of the Tshikapa area comprises flat Cretaceous sediments unconformably overlying the basement rocks. The Cretaceous sediments are comprised of the Loia and Bukungu Series. The Loia comprises a basal conglomerate dominated with basement clasts followed by arkoses and fine orange-brown sandstones and the Bukungu contains sandstones and local conglomerate. These formations are not diamondiferous. The Loia and Bukungu are overlain by the diamondiferous Kwango Formation. This formation is comprised of a deltaic basal conglomerate succeeded by sandstones. The Kwango Formation is covered by Kalahari Supergroup sands. The Longatshimo project areas have the potential to host both extensive and highly economic deposits of alluvial diamonds both in the terraces and the rivers.
Access and Infrastructure
An upgraded and second permanent camp was set up in the Longatshimo project area during mid 2007. The camp provides tented accommodation, ablution and brick constructed mess facilities for 30 senior and 30 junior staff A small clinic with a permanent doctor was also constructed within the camp. Water is obtained from the nearby river and purified for potable purposes. Fresh drinking water is also recovered from a natural spring in close proximity to the camp. Electricity is provided by a generator. A satellite dish and state of the art communications were constructed on site.
During the latter half of 2007 Pangea pioneered a new 4700km overland route through Angola to its Southern Kasai Occidental Licenses. This entailed the building of a new road and the task of constructing numerous steel bridges from Dundo to the camp. All large mining equipment was transported to site by means of this route. However, smaller equipment and supplies can be flown to site via Kananga or Tshikapa from the capital, Kinshasa. The road from Kananga to Tshikapa is in good condition and has been recently upgraded by Vodacom. Main access to the project area is from Tshikapa on dirt roads by four wheel vehicles or motorcycle. There are daily passenger and cargo flights from Kinshasa to Tshikapa. Access to working areas within the concessions is traversed by motorbike and four wheel drive vehicles. Numerous additional access roads have been constructed from the plant to bulk sample sites as roads are limited.
There is an existing airstrip in close proximity to the camp which can be upgraded and used once the project is in full production.