Lindian scoops up Woula bauxite deposit

Lindian Resources has signed an agreement to acquire the Woula bauxite project in Guinea, scooping up a 75 per cent holding in the near-term production asset. The project sits just 10km from an established mine haul road linking it to a nearby export port facility at Katougouma.

Signing of the acquisition agreement comes on the back of an initial due diligence period with the company now rolling into a scoping study and resource evaluation. The successful completion of the scoping study, along with a modest cash payment of US$150,000, will seal the deal for Lindian and deliver the company its majority holding in the project in West Africa. The 25 per cent balance in the project will be held by the vendor, Guinean businessman Mr Lancinet Dabo.

The Woula Project is an important addition to Lindian’s portfolio adding near term production potential to the Company’s bauxite assets. The Company’s immediate focus for Woula will be to commence discussions with the infrastructure owners to secure access on suitable commercial terms.

The Woula bauxite project is located in north-western Guinea, around 80km north of the Atlantic port at Kamsar. The project is situated within an established bauxite mining region and adjacent to existing infrastructure, including an established mine haul road just 10km to the south. The road links the operation to the 25 million tonne per annum bauxite-exporting river port at Katougouma just 50km away.

Woula hosts a global JORC resource of 64 million tonnes at 38.7 per cent alumina. The company’s due diligence showcases several zones of high-grade ore that may deliver a near-term open pit mining opportunity, with a potential direct shipping ore, or “DSO” set to generate a welcome cash flow. This bauxite DSO could be delivered to the mine gate or river port in Guinea for sale to third parties and is currently estimated to weigh in at a tidy 19 million tonnes grading at an impressive 41.7 per cent alumina.

Aside from the potential for a rapid move into production, the Woula tenure provides a number of opportunities for Lindian. While the southern Woula project area has been systematically explored by Japanese multi-national Mitsubishi Corporation, Lindian is looking to take a slightly asymmetrical approach to grow the resources base through the tenure. Lindian will focus its initial exploration across the under-explored eastern Woula tenement area, aimed at identifying additional zones of DSO and building the overall scale resources within the project.

Woula is a great complement to the portfolio, adding balance to Lindian’s Tier-1 Lelouma project and Gaoual Conglomerate project, with the potential to advance to production in the near term. This is an attractive combination for refinery groups and strategic investors.

With the Woula acquisition delivering Lindian a near-term production opportunity and the alumina price on the rise, this potential cash-cow could prove transformative. It could fast-track the development of the company’s world-class assets in Guinea transitioning Lindian from an emergent developer and cementing its position in ranks of global producers.

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