Mining Intelligence and News
Namibia

Husab Mine

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Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Uranium
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
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Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Husab uranium mine, located near Swakopmund, is one of the largest uranium mines in the world.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Epangelo Mining Company (Pty) Ltd. 10 % Indirect
China General Nuclear 90 % Indirect
Swakop Uranium Ltd. (operator) 100 % Direct
Swakop Uranium (SU) represents a partnership between the Republic of Namibia, represented by Epangelo Mining Company (10%) and China General Nuclear of the People’s Republic of China (90%).

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Intrusion related

Summary:

The Husab Project is dominated by a series of north-northeast to northeast trending regionalscale antiforms and synforms, which make up the main structural architecture of the entire Central Zone of the Damara. These meta-sedimentary folds or dome-like structures of the DOB are cored by gneissic and metasedimentary rocks of the Abbabis Formation.

The Husab Uranium Project uranium mineralisation is associated with intrusive alaskite rocks and is informally referred to as a Rössing Type uranium occurrence.

At the Husab Uranium Project, mineralised alaskite occur proximal to the contact between the Khan Formation and calc-silicates of the Rössing Formation. The majority of the uraniferous alaskites are located within the Rössing Formation. The host Rössing Formation can vary from 50m to over 200m wide and mineralised intercepts can vary from a few metres to over 100m wide.

The average width of mineralised horizons is approximately 20m. The mineralisation at Zones 1 to 4 is a near-continuous mineralised area extending across approximately 8km strike length and up to 2km across strike. Individual mineralised units can be traced for several hundred metres along strike and down dip. Metallurgical indicates that uraninite is the main uranium mineral. Elevated uranium grades (for example) associated with beta-Uranophane, an oxidation product of uraninite, have been identified in drillhole RDD002.

In addition to primary alaskite hosted uranium mineralisation, the tenement holding hosts occurrences of secondary uranium vanadate (carnotite), similar to that comprising mineralisation at the Langer Heinrich development project. The best examples of secondary uranium mineralisation are found at the Husab Uranium Project, north of the Husab fluorite mine. A single line of drilling completed on this target zone has intersected calcrete hosted uranium mineralisation in a flat lying paleochannel.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Production

CommodityUnits202220212020201920182017
Uranium t  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe4,0113,5711,344
All production numbers are expressed as U3O8.

Operational metrics

Metrics2022202120202019201820172016
Total tonnes mined  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe65,318,830 t88,082,523 t78,204,373 t100,047,675 t
Tonnes processed  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe
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Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Financials

Units20222021202020192018
After-tax Income M NAD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 337   -5,374  

Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

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EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
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Aerial view:

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