Almonty Industries to Collect Rwanda Tungsten Ore
The tungsten producer will combine existing small-scale output with mobile processing as the Government of Rwanda joins as an equity partner.
Almonty Industries Inc. (ALM) agreed to collect and export ore, pre-concentrate and panning tailings from Rwanda’s small-scale tungsten license holders, pairing that existing material with mobile processing and a new exploration program. The Government of Rwanda will participate as an equity partner in the venture, Almonty Rwanda Pty Ltd.
The arrangement is designed to extend Almonty’s strategy of building a secure, Western-aligned tungsten supply chain. The company said the partnership combines collection and export of material already being produced with modern processing, traceability and its own exploration.
Lewis Black, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said the most immediate opportunity is the material already in production. “Rwanda’s small-scale license holders are producing ore, pre-concentrate and panning tailings today, and this agreement allows us to collect, upgrade and export that material while we build out the collection and processing plant,” Black said.
He said Almonty is combining that existing production base with modern processing, traceability and its own exploration program, with the Rwandan government participating alongside the company as an equity partner. “That gives us the ability to build the platform from material that already exists while we explore for the future,” Black said.
Black framed the deal as part of an ongoing effort to find shorter-term solutions to a widening supply deficit in the West. He said the program is being undertaken at the request of the Western tungsten industrial base and that Almonty is pursuing several avenues. “This is the first of them,” he said.
The structure of the transaction was not specified in the announcement. Almonty said the agreement allows it to collect, upgrade and export material while it builds out the collection and processing plant, positioning the venture to operate from existing small-scale output before new exploration results come online.