28th Jul 2025 14:34
(Alliance News) - Pensana PLC on Monday said construction progress on the Longonjo rare earth project in Angola is on track to meet the capital cost schedule.
Pensana, a rare earths explorer developing deposits for electric vehicles and wind turbines, said the project team has confirmed that the USD217 million capital cost envelope "remains intact" and that the project is on schedule.
It said project partners Pro-Process Engineering Pty Ltd, Lycopodium ADP Group Ltd and SRK Consulting Ltd have started detailed engineering activities.
SRK has contracted a specialist drilling company to start drilling on the tailings storage facility to define the final excavation profile to meet industry standards. Excavated material will be used for mine haul road construction, plant and infrastructure terracing and construction of the storage facility wall.
After this drilling is completed, Pensana said the contractors will move to the Coola exploration project, 40 kilometres north of Longonjo, to begin a drilling programme. This will allow tests for a "deeply weathered and supergene enrichment central diatreme".
Ten drill holes of between 30 and 50 metres are planned to confirm the resource potential and allow for follow-up drilling, outlining how deposits may be used as a feedstock for the Longonjo operation.
"We are extremely pleased with the excellent progress on the Longonjo project. The confirmation that our capital costs remain firmly within budget-and that our development timeline is intact-is a great result for the team," said Chief Executive Officer Tim George.
"This reflects the quality of the planning and technical input to date, and we look forward to positive confirmation of the Coola deposit to extend the use of the processing infrastructure being developed at Longonjo beyond the [more than] 20 years currently contemplated."
Shares in Pensana were down 9.2% at 74.80 pence in London on Monday afternoon.
By Michael Hennessey, Alliance News reporter
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