REGIONAL TRAINING COURSE ON UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CLASSIFICATION 2009 FOR EVALUATION OF URANIUM AND THORIUM RESOURCES AND TO

LEVERAGE TRANSPARENT AND EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS LUXOR, EGYPTE, 18-22 OCTOBER 2015

URANIUM IN DRCMaking a comeback

Paulin MAWAYAHead of

DepartmentMining Cadaster

REPUBLIQUE DEMOCRATIQUE DU CONGOMinistère des Mines

CADASTRE MINIER

PRESENTATION OUTLINE

1. INTRODUCTION2. HISTORICAL EVENTS3. URANIUM OCCURENCES 4. GEOLOGY5. PERSPECTIVES AND CONCLUSION

1. INTRODUCTION D.R.Congo is located in the Central part of Africa

Official Language: French to which we can add 4 main local languages : Lingala, Kikongo, Tshiluba and Swahili.

Population: ca. 75,000,000 inhabitants.

The official Legal System is Romano-Germanic.

2. HISTORICAL EVENTS

• Shinkolobwe is the name of uranium mine in the Katanga province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC),

• The mineral deposit was dicovered in 1915 by Robert Rich Sharp,

• The mine was developed in 1921 by Union Minière du Haut Katanga (UMHK). Today it is owned by GECAMINES,

• Uranium-bearing ore was initially exported to Belgium for the extraction of radium.

• The United States used Shinkolobwe‘s uranium resource to supply the atomic bomb construction Project to during the second World War.

• The U.S. Army acquired 1200 tons of concentrated rich uranium from Congo

• The World became aware of the enormous destructive power of nuclear weapons

• The mining site has been inoperative since 1960 because of the high exploitation costs and the dangers involved with uranium ore

• The mining site was officially closed on January 28, 2004 by presidential decree. However eight people died and a further thirteen people were injured in July 2004 when part of mine collapsed

• On March 2009, an agreement was signed between AREVA CEO Lauvergeon and the Congolese Government of the DRC

• Agreement implies creating a joint commission to develop a technical prospecting programme and a detailed inventory of U mining sites in a database

• Agreement is based on « win-win partenership » to develop the country’s mining resources

• AREVA estimated that « DRC’s size and geographical profile have given it major uranium reserves »

• On May 2013, AREVA visited Shinkolobwe mine and made a preliminary report

3. URANIUM OCCURENCES

Uraniumoccurences

Mineralisation Host lithology Major Feature

Historical Resources (U3O8)t

Average grade (ppm)

Shinkolobwe U+Cu+Co+Ni+Fe+ Au+Pt+Pd

Metasediment Faulting/ Folding

40 000 1 700

Kalongwe Cu+Co+U+Fe+ Au+Pt+Pd

Metasediment Faulting/Folding

- -

Luiswishi Cu+Co+U+Fe+V Metasediment Faulting/Folding

- -

Swambo Cu+Co+Fe+U Metasediment Faulting/Folding

- 2 400

Musonoi Cu+Co+Mn+U+Pt+Pd+Au+Ni

Metasediment Faulting/Folding

- -

Kamoto principal

Cu+Co+Ni+U+ Fe+Ba

Metasediment Faulting 2 000 10 000

Dikuluwe Cu+Co+Ni+U+ Fe+V

Metasediment Faulting - 1 700

Kobokobo - Metamorphic Pegmatite - -

3. REGIONAL GEOLOGY

GENERAL STRATIGRAPHYKAROO et KALAHARI

Group Sub-Groupe Lithologies

N E O P R O T E R O Z O ÏQ U E

↑±560/550MaSuper

Groupe duKATANGA↓±880Ma

KUNDELUNGUKu

Plateaux Ku-3 Shales et arkoses

Kiubo Ku-2 Shales dolomitiques, shales sableux, calcaires roses.

DiamictiteKalule Ku-1 Shales dolomitiques et silts

NGUBANg

Monwezi Ng-2 Shales sableux ou dolomitiques, dolomites ou calcaires

Likasi Ng-1 Shales sableux ou dolomitiques. Diamictite

Mwashya R-4 Shales dolomitiques. Dolomites, jaspes et pyroclastites

ROAN

Dipeta R-3 Interstratification de dolomies et de silts argilodolomitiques

Mines R-2 Dolomies, shales diolomitiques et silts.

R.A.T. R-1 Silts dolomitiques ; grès et pélites

Socle KIBARIEN et /ou PRE KIBARIENMESO PROTERO-ZOIQUE

MINING PRODUCTION SHINKOLOBWE

U was mined only from Shinkolobwe mine, Average grade is between 1.860 and 152.550ppm and resources are estimated around 40 000 t U3O8 U exploration and mining have never been perfomed using conventional methods and techniques, U mineralization is always associed with other minerals ( Copper, Cobalt, Nickel, Palladium, Thorium, Monazite) There is strong need for advanced exploration methods and techniques, including expert assistance to design exploration programmes, equipment provision, capacity building in U resource evaluation,Legal and Regulatory framework to include U Mining

PERSPECTIVES AND CONCLUSION

Thanks for your kind attention