Chamber of Mines Supports Value Addition to Namibia's Minerals

On 7 June, as quoted in the Cabinet decisionsissuedbytheMinisterofInformation, “Cabinet approved the prohibition forthe export of certain critical minerals such as, unprocessed crushed lithium ore, cobalt, manganese, graphite, and rare earth elements; and Cabinet approved those smaller quantities of the above-mentioned minerals may be allowed for export at the discretion of the Minister of Mines and EnergysubjecttoCabinetendorsement.”

The Chamber of Mines of Namibia wholeheartedly supports local value addition to all minerals produced in Namibia to grow the economy and create jobs. The Chamber welcomes the Cabinet decision on the understanding that Cabinet is referring to the ban on the exportofmineralores, meaningoresofallthe minerals mentioned in the Cabinet decision. According to the Chamber of Mines CEO, Veston Malango,“Itisnecessaryfor Governmenttocontrol andregulatetheexport ofunprocessedcritical mineralstosupportjob creation and grow the economy in line with the African Mining Vision.” The processing and value addition to all minerals, inclusive of critical minerals, is indeed a widely held narrative in Namibia The Chamber of Mines thus recognises that the intention of this directive is to ensure thatNamibiadoesnot lose out on any potential local value addition. The measures taken by Government do not inhibit the valuable work being done by companies in Namibia, that intend to establish mining operations and processing facilities However, the Chamber is concerned that the requirement for an endorsement by Cabinetonexportsoforein small quantities may unintentionally delay genuine test work being carried out by Chambermembersfor purposes of critical metallurgical test work required in the design of the muchneeded processing plants in Namibia. In this regard, the Chamber CEO explains that theChamberintendsto proactively engage the Minister of Mines and Energy so that exports of minerals for such purposesshouldnotbe unreasonablydelayed.

TheChamberofMines President, Mr Zebra Kasete expressed that the cabinet directive will not have any immediate repercussions on the future plans of Chamber members, as they all haveplanstoaddvalue locally to the critical minerals at least to the concentrate level and retainjobsinNamibia.

“The Chamber will proactively engage Government to collec- tively identify processing and value addition opportunities for Namibia's critical minerals, and what enablersarenecessary to make Namibia an attractive destination for investment into value addition opportunities,”hestated.