Uranium mining company Lotus (Africa), an 85%-owned subsidiary of ASX- and OTCQX-listed Lotus Resources, has received approval from Malawi’s Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (AERA) for the resumption of mining and processing operations at the Kayelekera uranium project in the country.
This is one of the final remaining milestones to Lotus restarting uranium production at Kayelekera, which is on track for the third quarter.
The AERA’s review and assessment of Lotus’ submitted documentation, including the evaluation of the provisional mine closure plan, has been determined to be satisfactory.
The AERA has indicated that it will perform a verification inspection at Kayelekera once operations have begun.
“Securing the AERA’s radiation licence authorisation was one of two remaining key regulatory milestones in advance of the restart of Kayelekera . . . We are pleased that this authorisation has now been received. We look forward to working with the AERA once operations recommence,” Lotus MD Greg Bittar said.
Following submission of the final environment- and social-impact assessment (ESIA) in early April, he said the company was working with the Malawi Environment Protection Agency (MEPA) to ensure this remaining milestone was achieved.
As part of the approval process, the MEPA conducted a visit to Kayelekera on April 24 and is now working towards finalising its assessment of the ESIA, Bittar said.
