Mining company hailed for projects

P

halombe North East legislator Denis Namachekecha has commended Lancaster Exploration Limited for providing basic amenities to the area.

The company has drilled 22 boreholes and is upgrading roads in Mauzi Ward where it is mining rare earth.

Namachekecha said this on Wednesday at Songwe Hills mining site where Vice-President Saulos Chilima inspected preliminary works by the United Kingdom mining company.

He said: “The company also provided school materials to learners at Changa, Mangazi and Mphembezu primary schools.

“It is also providing scholarships to two students from the area”.

Namachekecha said he expected the company to employ many people when full-scale mining starts.

In an interview after winding up a tour of Phalombe and Mulanje districts, Chilima described the Phalombe mining venture as a game changer, saying it is reflecting well the country’s industrialisation aspirations.

The Veep was taken on a tour of the base of Songwe Hills where large-scale mining of rare earth is expected to start.

Lancaster Exploration Limited president Alexander Lemon said Songwe Hills has large deposits of rare earth.

“The rare earth was discovered in 1930 following a geological survey and later the Japanese International Cooperation Agency did another geo-survey in collaboration with Malawi Geological Survey Department in the 1980s to ascertain quantity,” he said.

Rare earth is used to manufacture electronics for cell phones, X-ray machines and is largely used in manufacturing of electric vehicles.

Songwe Hill mining site is closer to Mpoto Lagoon and borders Mozambique in Phalombe North East.