Sphere Investments Limited (2.1% – Indirect)
Summary
| Lion shareholding (indirect): | 11.8 million (held by African Lion) |
| Total investment by Lion: | $1.4 million |
| Date of initial investment: | January 2004 |
| ASX Code: | SPH |
| Area of activity: | Mauritania – Iron Ore |
| Website: | www.sphereinvestments.com.au |
Company
Sphere Investments Limited is a West African focused iron ore company which is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. Sphere’s flagship project is the Guelb el Aouj Iron Ore (magnetite) Project in Mauritania, West Africa. Sphere is developing the Guelb el Aouj Iron Ore Project in partnership with Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière (SNIM), Mauritania’s existing iron ore producer.
SNIM is the world’s seventh largest supplier to the seaborne traded market in iron ore and currently exports 12 Mtpa of iron ore to markets in Europe and North Africa.
The Guelb el Aouj project will include an open cut mine, beneficiation and pelletising plants to produce high grade Direct Reduction (DR) pellets for export, utilising joint venture partner SNIM’s existing iron ore railway and port infrastructure. The resource estimate at Guelb el Aouj East deposit is 701 Mt of which 472 Mt have been converted to Reserves. Of significance is the high 70% iron grade of the ore after beneficiation, which allows the production of DR pellets that can be sold as direct feed into cost effective electric arc furnaces in the Middle East.
Sphere has a 50% stake in the Guelb el Aouj Project for funding a Bankable Feasibility Study due for completion in December 2007.