Huambo - The exploration of "Rare Earths" in the municipality of Longonjo, central Huambo province, could begin in 2026, the executive director of the board of the Australian mining company Pensana, Tim George, said on Monday.
Speaking to the press after a meeting with the deputy governor for the Political, Social and Economic sector of Huambo province, Angelino Elavoco, George said that exploration would begin as soon as the prospecting work underway since 2015 was completed, and that construction of the support infrastructure would begin this year.
The "Rare Earths" exploration project, part of the "Ozango Mineral" programme, precisely based on the identification of neodymium and praseodymium, is designed for 20 years in the municipality of Longonjo, in the western corridors of this region of Angola's Central Plateau.
Tim George said that the project would create around 1,90 direct jobs, 650 of them during the infrastructure construction phase and the other 440 during the actual exploration period, in order to contribute to local economic development.
He recalled that the exploration will be accompanied by the implementation of various social responsibility programmes for the well-being of the population, with the promotion of sustainable agriculture and the professional training of young people in the mining sector.
He stressed that the mineral reserve project will be able to count on local labour, resulting from the professionalisation of young people in Huambo province, sponsored by the Ozango Mineral project, to create jobs in the municipality of Longonjo, in a sustainable mineral development programme.
With an initial budget of around 200 million US dollars, the investors also intend to take part in boosting the economic development programmes concentrated in the Lobito Corridor and to showcase the mineral potential of Huambo province.
With this project, he added, entrepreneurs focusing on the mineral exploration programme will be able to take part in plans to improve Huambo province's social infrastructure, related to access roads, to encourage the efficient movement of people and goods.
In turn, the deputy governor for the Political, Social and Economic sector of Huambo province, Angelino Elavoco, said that the "Rare Earths" exploration project will be another concrete opportunity to diversify the economy and, at the same time, create new jobs.
He also reaffirmed that the government of Huambo province will provide unconditional support for the success of the project in the municipality of Longonjo, in order to better attract other potential national and international investors with a view to improving the living conditions of the population.
Angelino Elavoco emphasised that Huambo province intends to contribute to the increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by promoting this rare earth exploration project, which is at an advanced stage of implementation.
At this stage, the "Ozango Mineral" project will begin in the coming months with the construction of infrastructures in the municipality of Longonjo, the programme for which has been set at one year.
According to studies, unlike other metals such as iron, which is found in large deposits and is easy to extract, these elements are widely dispersed, but are more abundant than gold, which is present in 0.00000031 per cent of every 100g of crust.
These are substances found in relatively low concentrations, which need to be excavated and processed with chemical reagents, generating a heavy environmental impact.
Consumption of these minerals worldwide amounts to 150,000 tonnes per year.
There are 17 types of "rare earth" metals, but only six are well known: neodymium, lanthanum, praseodymium, gadolinium, samarium and cerium.
China is the main producer and market for this mineral. LT/JSV/ALH/DAN/DOJ
