LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Kodal Minerals announced continued progress at its Bougouni Lithium Project in southern Mali on Friday, with construction nearing completion and production of lithium spodumene concentrate ramping up, despite a pending transfer of the mining licence delaying exports.
The AIM-traded firm said that since achieving its first concentrate in February, the project's dense media separation (DMS) plant had produced over 11,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate.

During the final week of March alone, 13,400 tonnes of material were processed, yielding 1,920 tonnes of concentrate grading 5.63% lithium oxide.

Exports to China via the Port of Abidjan in Côte d'Ivoire were expected to begin once the final approvals were granted for the transfer of the mining licence.

The licence, currently held by Future Minerals, was being transferred to Les Mines de Lithium de Bougouni (LMLB), the locally registered mining company.

All necessary changes to LMLB's corporate structure had been completed and approved by Mali's relevant ministers, with only presidential sign-off by Assimi Goïta remaining.

Due to the administrative delay, Kodal Mining UK (KMUK) - in which Kodal holds a 49% stake - had formally requested an extension for the second $7.5m payment to the State of Mali under the terms of a binding memorandum of understanding.

The government had acknowledged the request, and a response was awaited.

Despite the hold-up in licensing, Kodal indicated that the Bougouni project was well-positioned to enter commercial production in the near term.

"I am pleased to confirm that the ramp-up and optimisation of the project and DMS processing plant is progressing and, positively, we are seeing ongoing improvements through the modifications and adjustments to the DMS processing plant as advancements continue," said chief executive officer Bernard Aylward.

"The team has created a considerable stockpile of spodumene concentrate ready for transport and sale, equivalent to the first month of expected production.

"We are continuing to increase the stockpile, which provides confidence in the ability of the operation to meet the proposed production schedule of 11,000 tonnes of concentrate per month."

Aylward said the company was also continuing to assist KMUK in its work with the Mali government for the transfer of the mining licence to KMUK's local subsidiary, LMLB.

"The update of LMLB's company structure to include the Mali Government's shareholding has been completed and all necessary compliance has been approved by the Ministers of Mining and Finance.

"We look forward to receiving sign off from the President of Mali shortly, marking the successful completion of the transfer."

At 1122 BST, shares in Kodal Minerals were down 2% at 0.39p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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