Major Chinese mining company Sinomine Resources is set to take over the Namibe lithium and caesium project in Angola, adding to its regional lithium portfolio, after striking a deal with Australian explorer Tyranna Resources.
Tyranna's subsidiary will offload its 90pc stake in a Mauritius-incorporated entity that owns the Namibe project to Sinomine in a $1.44mn binding deal, said Tyranna on 7 July. Tyranna gained full ownership of the project after acquiring the remaining 20pc stake in April.
Sinomine funded the project's exploration and development, having agreed to fork out more than A$31mn ($21.5mn) in stages back in 2023. An offtake for 50pc of the project's spodumene and pollucite — a rare mineral containing caesium that is used in atomic clocks, vacuum tubes — was in place prior to the current deal.
The major Chinese mining group been expanding its lithium supply sources in Africa, alongside its fellow Chinese lithium rivals such as Ganfeng and Canmax. Ganfeng signed a deal to fully take over the Goulamina lithium mine in Mali in July 2025. Meanwhile, Canmax commissioned a lithium mining and processing plant in Nigeria last week in partnership with Jiangxi Jiuling.
Sinomine earlier announced plans to build a 100,000 t/yr lithium sulphate plant in Zimbabwe that is expected to commence production in mid-2027. It also owns the Bikita mine in Zimbabwe. A sudden halt on all exports of raw mineral and lithium concentrates earlier this year by Zimbabwe triggered turmoil across the lithium market. The halt was later lifted. But a lithium concentrate export ban that is poised to start in 2027 has prompted miners in the country to build up domestic processing capacity.
