Premier African Minerals Ltd (AIM:PREM, OTC:PRMMF) said the installation of the new ball mill at its Zulu lithium plant should be completed by January/February 2024, with revenue to be generated thereafter.
George Roach, chief executive, said: "With these upgrades at Zulu, we expect to rectify the most significant of the deficiencies in the original plant design and be able to mill sufficient material to the correct particle size to meet the design capacity for the float plant of 37.5 ton per hour of dry solids.
“At the same time, attention is being paid to many other aspects of the original design and equipment schedule and to mining procedures to ensure that spodumene floated meets specifications and to limit contamination of waste material (and in particular talc) that was not previously removed in the sorting process.
“We do not expect any delays with the civil construction, Roach said, adding that production of spodumene to grade and within specifications is attainable and anticipated SC6 production is now within our grasp.
“Our Offtake and Prepayment Partner remains extremely supportive and this is evidenced by the fact that they have not called for payment related to the delayed delivery. In this regard, no further statement is anticipated."