The piece “Malawi invites investors to sample geo-data” featured below was initially published in Malawi’s Mining & Trade Review Issue Number 34 that is circulating this February 2016.

The full edition is available for download here. This monthly publication is edited by Marcel Chimwala.

Malawi invites investors to sample geo-data

By Madalitso Charwita Mhango

The Malawi Government has finally released the long awaited geo physical data which was officially launched by the Minister of Energy and Mining Bright Msaka last year.

The geo-data is now available to interested investors following the publication of the price list in the government gazette as stipulated in the country’s laws.

Public Relations Officer for mining in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining Wesley Undi tells Mining & Trade Review that investors, who have been complaining of the delays by the government to release the data, are now free to access the data of their choice.

The published price list, among other details, indicates that a high resolution airborne geophysical map of 1: 100,000 in PDF costs K75,000 while a high resolution geophysical paper map of 1: 100,000 in colour costs K20,250.

The availability of the data will go a long way in attracting mining investors into Malawi as it will reduce the risk in selecting potential exploration targets,

says Undi.

The countrywide airborne geophysical survey was conducted between September 2013 and August 2014 as a component of the Mining Governance and Growth Support Project, which was bankrolled by the World Bank and the European Union.

The Malawi Government contracted Canada’s Sanders Geophysics to execute the survey, and the Canadian firm worked with the British and Malawian Geological Survey Departments as quality control supervisors.

The data was processed by Sander Geophysics and delivered to Malawi’s Geological Survey Department in June 2015.

Results of the survey, among other things, indicate that there is high uranium concentration in the area surrounding Paladin’s mothballed Kayelekera Uranium Mine.

The survey also indicated a uranium anomaly further south of Kayelekera, which calls for more ground follow up.

The survey has also pinpointed the Ngabu Fault in the Lowe Shire as a possible petroleum trap while Mchinji, Rumphi and Chitipa may be mineralized with nickel, platinum group minerals, copper and cobalt.