Uranium miner Paladin Energy says Malawi drying and packaging plant off-line

PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Uranium miner Paladin Energy on Monday reported that the drying and packaging plant at the Kayelekera uranium operation, in Malawi, was temporarily off-line owing to a planned maintenance shutdown.

CEO John Borshoff said that plans were in place to divert Kayelekera concentrates through the Langer Heinrich operations, in Namibia, for final drying and packing en route to export from Walvis Bay, in the normal manner.

All Kayelekera concentrate was currently exported from Walvis Bay and could easily be diverted to the Langer Heinrich operation, the miner said.

The Langer Heinrich operation had sufficient reserve capacity in its drying and packing plant to process the Kayelekera concentrate, until the Malawi plant was recommissioned.

The short-term changes to the final drying and packaging of Kayelekera concentrate was not expected to impact the company’s production guidance for the 2012 financial year, which was currently estimated at between 7.4-million and 7.9-million pounds.

Paladin recently executed a $141-million project finance facility for the Stage 3 expansion of its Langer Heinrich mine, which would increase production from 5.2-million pounds a year to 3.7-million pounds a year. The project was on track to reach nameplate capacity by the first quarter of 2012.