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LionOre signals diversification plan
Brendan Ryan
Posted: Mon, 08 Aug 2005
[miningmx.com] -- CANADIAN and Australian-listed nickel producer, LionOre International, is looking at explosive growth over the next five years drawing on its mines in Australia, Botswana and South Africa.
LionOre operates the Tati Nickel mine near Francistown in Botswana and in February this year bought a 50% interest in Nkomati Nickel from Patrice Motsepe’s African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) for $28m.
LionOre has now opened an office in Johannesburg and is looking at other possible developments in Africa which could broaden its interests beyond nickel.
Speaking at the Diggers and Dealers Mining Forum in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, LionOre COO, Glenn Jardine, said any diversification would only take place in three to five years.
“Our focus will principally be on nickel for the next three to five years where we do have a lot on our plate. But we are looking
elsewhere in Africa although we do not yet have an exploration team on the ground,” he said.
LionOre will produce an estimated 30,000t of nickel during 2005. Jardine forecasts that this will rise to 45,000t in 2007 and 80,000t in 2008.
“If you think that’s ambitious remember that back in 2002 (when LionOre produced just under 10,000t of nickel) we were forecasting production of 30,000t by 2005,” Jardine told delegates.
Tati Nickel produced 11,446t of nickel during 2004. LionOre is looking to increase this by 20% through an optimisation programme and then add a further 20,000t/year through construction of a new refining plant using the group’s Activox hydrometallurgical technology.
 we are looking elsewhere in Africa 
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