Chromex Turns In Profit

AIM-listed, Cromex Mining turned in a profit of £195,000 for the year ended 30 September 2009, compared with a £1.4m loss in 2008.
The company has two key mining assets on the Bushveld Complex in South Africa, which between them have total resources of approximately 41 million tonnes of chromite.
Chromex successfully commissioned its processing facility at the Stellite open cast chrome mine in South Africa during the course of the year, thus enabling it to take advantage as the chrome market began to recover towards the end of 2009. The commissioning of the first phase was completed in August 2009 and used stockpiles mined in the early part of the financial year. This allowed mining operations at Stellite to be suspended during a period of adverse market conditions. Full mining restarted in January 2010.
Stellite will initially produce approximately 20,000 run of mine (ROM) tonnes per month, increasing to 40,000 ROM tonnes per month once a dense media separation circuit (DMS) is installed at the plant. This is expected to be completed during Q3 of 2010.

Both Stellite, and the Mecklenburg mine on the east limb of the Bushveld, are owned and operated by South African registered Chromex Mining Co, which is 74% owned by Chromex and 26% owned by their Black Economic Empowerment partner Umnotho WeSizwe.


Development at Mecklenburg project has been deferred pending the conclusion of a court case with Samancor Chrome Limited who applied to the South African High Court in 2008, to set aside the decision to award Chromex the Mining Rights.

The company said that it continues to consolidate its position as a long term chrome producer in southern Africa. Chromex has agreed to acquire 49% of Falvect Mining Ltd, a Zimbabwe-based company with chrome assets.