After having confirmed an investment by the Angolan Sovereign Wealth Fund, Pensana Rare Earths, promoter of Angola’s first rare earth mining project says a recent pick-up in Chinese demand ensure the project will not lose momentum. Now, Angola’s president has approved a 35-year mining investment contract for the exploitation of the Longonjo rare earth project. According to the company, the mine “will become a major global supplier of the magnet metals”.
According to a release by Pensana Rare Earths, the licence “has been granted with attractive fiscal terms”, namely 2% royalty on revenue,
20% national tax and 5% municipal tax on revenue following an initial two-year tax holiday.
Additionally, the project has been given by the Government custom duties exemption on imported equipment, full 5-year capital repayment allowance and dividend tax exemption for 3 years.
The Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo is quoted in the company release as saying that the Angolan Presidential approval of the Longonjo Mining Investment Contract “reflects the Government’s strong support for foreign investments which help diversify the economy and bring direct social and economic benefits to the communities in which they operate”.
“Pensana’s investment will be one of the largest investments in regional Angola in recent years and will create jobs, provide training, support local businesses as well as improving the social infrastructure within the Huambo region. We look forward to working closely with Pensana in advancing the project over the coming months”, adds Azevedo.
For Pensana CEO Tim George, the Mining Licence “is a major milestone in the rapid development of the Longonjo project”. The support of the Ministry in expediting the contract is very much acknowledged and is testament to Angola being ‘open for business’ – even during the Covid-19 lockdown”, the executive adds.
According to the company, the mine “will become a major global supplier of the magnet metals critical to our clean energy future.”
Photo of Longonjo Project Map | © Pensana Metals
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