Mining fleet rolls in as Lindian ramps up Malawi rare earths play

Budding rare earths miner Lindian Resources has moved a step closer to production after taking stock of its mining fleet at the company’s Kangankunde project in Malawi. 

The fleet, made up of a dozer, excavators, wheel loaders, a grader, articulated dump trucks and a drill rig, forms a core pillar of the company’s owner-operator mining model and will underpin initial mining activities, including tailings storage facility construction.

With early works and site establishment wrapped up, Lindian says construction activity is gaining momentum across multiple fronts as it targets first production later this year.

The mobile workshop facility is on track, with earthworks complete, structural fabrication underway and key materials procured. The facility is being built to support maintenance and servicing of the Komatsu owner-operator fleet.

In other areas of the project, processing plant development remains ahead of schedule, with Lindian’s design-and-construct partner, Obsideo Consulting, set to mobilise to site next month to begin civil works, following completion of detailed engineering and construction planning.

Construction of 10 VIP accommodation units and a supporting mess hall is nearly complete with delivery due mid-month, providing dedicated housing for the Obsideo project team during execution of the processing plant civil works.

Malawi’s Chief Inspector of Explosives has given the thumbs-up to the proposed explosives magazine, with early site works and clearing in train. The facility will feature bulk explosives storage, CCTV and secure perimeter fencing. 

The project’s administrative building is taking shape, with foundations now laid, allowing construction to kick off. The facility will house management offices, technical and IT workspaces, logistics functions and a site clinic, forming the operational hub through construction and into production.

Elsewhere, work on the fuel farm is progressing well. The facility will house two 40,000-litre bulk fuel storage tanks – a critical lifeline as the project progresses toward ramp-up and first production. On the power front, ESCOM Malawi is busy installing overhead power lines to support Kangankunde’s first-stage operations. 

Lindian Resources executive director Zac Komur said: “The pace on site at Kangankunde continues to build across all work fronts, with solid progress across civil preparation, power, camp facilities and key support infrastructure. The first Komatsu fleet deliveries are an important step in establishing our owner-operator mining capability, with commissioning and operator training progressing in parallel to support operational readiness.”

Kangankunde packs serious geological muscle, carrying a 23.7-million-tonne probable reserve at 2.9 per cent total rare earths oxide (TREO). The inventory is underpinned by a hefty 61-million-tonne indicated resource grading 2.43 per cent. These numbers cement its status as one of the most significant undeveloped, high-grade rare earths deposits in the world. 

The company’s push toward rare earths production has been enhanced by a recent $91.5 million capital raise and a 15-year offtake with Iluka Resources for 6,000 tonnes per annum of concentrate, securing a blue-chip customer and long-term demand from Iluka’s Eneabba refinery in WA.

Renewed speculation around US interest in Greenland under a Trump-backed administration has intensified the focus on rare earths as strategic assets. Paired with China’s latest export curbs on Japan, the storyline only sharpens, underlining a growing global urgency to break supply chains free from China’s grip.

Lindian’s timeline to production is short. Amid a global market seeking stable supplies, Kangankunde is shaping up to become one of the rare earths sector’s standout new arrivals when first production lands in late 2026.

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