Alphamin Resources, which mines tin in the northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, has lowered its guidance for the final quarter of 2023 and pushed back the commissioning of a plant amid ongoing heavy rains in that country.
“Historically, the months of December, January and February are relatively dry from a rainfall perspective,” the company, valued at about R15.7bn on the JSE, said on Wednesday.
The downpour led to already poor road conditions worsening, adding to truck transit times and lowering export revenue.
As a result, the company now expects the fourth quarter contained tin sales to fall 29.3%-35.7% year on year to 2,000-2,200 tonnes, while contained tin production remains on target at 3,100 tonnes.
“The fourth quarter of 2023 sales delays should catch up during the first quarter of 2024 when road conditions are expected to improve,” the company said.
Meanwhile, the delay in the last batch of containers needed to wrap up the commissioning of its Mpama South plant means its commissioning will now be pushed back a month to the end of March.
The headquarters of Alphamin Resources is in Mauritius and its primary listing is in Toronto, with a secondary one on the JSE’s AltX.
The group mines about 4% of the world’s tin. Its Mpama North mine is one of the world’s highest-grade tin resources, with the group saying it is about four times higher than most other operating tin mines.
“The Mpama South underground mine is operational and has commenced with the stockpiling of ore on [the] surface in preparation for a rapid ramp-up during plant commissioning,” it said.
Tin is primarily used for soldering circuit boards, but demand in coming years is expected to be sustained due to demand in evolving technologies, including energy storage and vehicle batteries, according to a report from market research firm Mordor Intelligence.
With Mudiwa Gavaza
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