By;Hertha Ekandjo
The mines and energy ministry has yet to visit the operations of Chinese mining company Xinfeng to ascertain whether it has stopped shipping tonnes of lithium ore to China.
Last month the ministry said it had granted Xinfeng permission to transport crushed lithium ore from its mine to the port of Walvis Bay for export purposes from 11 to 29 November to complete their permitted quota of 135 000 tonnes.
The ministry’s senior public relations officer Ten Hasheela told The Villager that she could not confirm whether Xinfeng had adhered to the agreement reached by the ministry with the company.
“I cannot say that they have stopped after the minister had visited the site and spoke to the management. The 29 November was the last day for any consignment to come from the mine to the port,” Hasheela explained.
Last month the newly appointed mining commissioner Isabella Chirchir said the ministry was sending police to the site to investigate reports whether the company was still shipping tonnes of lithium ore to China are true, despite being barred from doing so.
The chief PRO added that the last consignment from the mine is supposed to be loaded onto the vessel at the port by 29 November, however, she said the ministry is not sure if this has been done and if the vessel has left the port to take off the last lithium ore to China.
The approval for the continuation of the transportation and shipping of lithium ore to China was necessitated by a contractual agreement made by the company with a vessel that was already en route to Walvis Bay before the ministry cancelled the initial transport permit.
At the time of approval, the ministry stated that the company would be allowed to transport the crushed ore to the port to export 55,000 tonnes as per the contractual agreement for industrial testing, which will inform whether a processing plant should be set up at the mine.
Mines minister Tom Alweendo has since said that the company decided to export crushed ore not only for testing purposes, but also to make an income for its operations.
Meanwhile, Hasheela says that Xinfeng’s mining licence is still valid and would continue operations after submitting a reviewed mining schedule which should first be approved by the ministry.
“If the ministry is satisfied, then their operation according to the schedule that they have handed in would continue as such. Their licence is still valid, the issue was just about them transporting and that is the license that had expired,” Hasheela clarified.
She further said that the company failed to adhere to the schedule that they first submitted to the ministry which cost them their transporting permit.
She said the mine will continue full operations after it has “sorted out its issues”.
Xinfeng has already exported 75 000 tonnes of lithium ore to China, with another 60 000 tonnes awaiting export to that southeast Asian country.
The minister visited the company’s mining operations just out of Omaruru, in the Daures constituency, on 18 November. This is after The Villager reported that the Chinese mining company was still exporting lithium ore out of Namibia through the port of Walvis Bay despite
“I have also visited the Walvis Bay harbour to verify the quantity that is stored there waiting to be exported,” Alweendo said.
The ministry admitted that the 135 000 tonnes of lithium ore are an unreasonably high quantity for testing purposes.
On the back of this, Xingfeng Investments has come out to say it will have to export lithium ore every month for three more years to cover its mining operations, create cash flow, and allow its planned N$500 million lithium processing factory, with a desalination plant, to take off.
Mines Ministry Yet To Confirm Xinfeng Has Stopped Exports After Deadline Day
