UK-based Andrada Mining has garnered $25m (£20.11m) from Orion Resource Partners’ Orion Mine Finance (OMF) to support its Uis mine in Namibia.
The $25m includes a $12.5m funding package in unsecured tin royalties, $2.5m to acquire 30.5 million shares and a $10m unsecured convertible loan.
Additionally, Andrada will issue OMF III (Mauritius) warrants to buy its shares at 9.45p each.
The $12.5m will be earmarked to increase tin production at Andrada’s Uis mine.
In addition, the royalty funding along with the ongoing continuous improvement programme (CI2) is aimed at achieving production of up to 2,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of tin metal.
The remaining $12.5m will be used to expedite lithium and tantalum revenue streams after drilling results and milestones are achieved.
Andrada CEO Anthony Viljoen said: “We are pleased to announce the drawdown of the Orion funding, following the fulfilment of all conditions. This partnership with Orion will not only enable the expansion of tin production to up to 2,000tpa but will also allow us to accelerate our wider lithium and tin development surrounding our Uis mine.
“The exceptional results achieved across all exploration drilling campaigns this year indicate that Andrada has the potential to generate additional revenue streams from multiple sites. We are pleased to have Orion, a globally respected resource funding partner, onboard to support our planned growth period.”
The funding will also be used for further exploration drilling programmes to determine lithium mineralisation within the Uis, Lithium Ridge and Spodumene Hill mining licence areas.
Furthermore, it will support metallurgical test work for a better understanding of the elemental configuration of regional pegmatites.
The mine has a tin production production rate of 1,000tpa. With the funding, it is expected to increase to between 1,600tpa and 2,000tpa.
Source: Mining Technology
