Aterian Plc, a British mineral exploration company with operations in Rwanda, announced that it will kick off major drilling activities for lithium in September in Huye District in the Southern Province.
The drilling process involves extensive exploration of the underground with an intention to identify mineral potential, which is crucial for assessing the feasibility of a mining operation.
This exercise will inform Aterian whether there’s any prospective chance of having a mine that would usher them into actual mineral processing activities.
This exercise is a result of a joint venture that Aterian entered with RIO Tinto Mining and Exploration Ltd, and Kinunga Mining Ltd.
The agreement allowed for the exploration and development of lithium and by-products, through a project that boasts 19 identified pegmatite zones for lithium, cesium, and tantalum on 2,750 hectares of land in Southern Province.
Aterian, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange is an exploration, trading, and development company with a diversified portfolio in Africa dealing in critical and strategic metals projects.
The agreement indicated that RIO has the option to invest $7.5 million in two stages to earn up to a 75 percent interest in the license to explore minerals vital for a successful energy transition to renewable energy.
But Aterian is not the only company that is involved in lithium exploration. Trinity Metals is another firm that kicked off drilling activities, all in search of a critical metal - lithium - that Rwanda sees as important in generating increased mining revenue.
Lithium is a key metal that the world is desperately searching for as the race to build electric vehicles (EVs) rage on. This is because lithium plays a critical role in the cathodes of all types of lithium-ion batteries that power EVs.
Rwanda has an opportunity to attract more investors into the exploration of critical metals such as lithium. Recent efforts to introduce incentives in mining is a good step in the right direction.
It is critical for the government to take a lead especially given that traditional financiers such as banks have always taken a back seat when it comes to financing the exploration activities, simply because they look at these activities as speculative ventures.