Premier African Minerals Limited has concluded a key procurement, installation and commissioning contract for a spodumene flotation plant at its Zulu Lithium and Tantalum Project in Zimbabwe, marking a significant step in efforts to stabilise and optimise processing performance at the site.

The AIM-listed miner said its subsidiary, Zulu Lithium (Private) Limited, signed the agreement with Xinhai Technology Processing’s wholly owned subsidiary, Thriving Engineering Private Limited, for the provision of a 15–20 tonnes per hour spodumene flotation circuit.

The contract covers the supply of flotation equipment and specialist engineering services to support installation, commissioning and optimisation of the plant. 

According to the company, all civil works required to accommodate the flotation plant upgrade have already been completed, paving the way for installation and commissioning to proceed without delay.

Premier Managing Director Graham Hill said the company’s immediate focus remains on improving processing consistency at Zulu.

“As we have previously communicated, our focus at Zulu is firmly on improving the stability and consistency of overall processing performance,” Hill said.

He acknowledged that finalising the agreement took longer than initially anticipated but said the additional time allowed for technical alignment and stronger contractual safeguards.

“Whilst the concluding of this agreement with the Contractor has taken a little longer than planned the intervening period has provided opportunity for a combination of detailed technical discussions and the need to ensure that the appropriate contractual protections, including performance-related provisions, were properly aligned with our operational requirements and validation of funding,” he said.

Under the terms of the agreement, flotation equipment is expected to be delivered within 15 days, alongside on-site engineering support for installation and commissioning. The contractor will be required to commission the circuit to achieve targeted spodumene concentrate grades and recoveries at a design throughput of 15–20 tonnes per hour, subject to feed meeting agreed specifications.

The contract also includes a process performance guarantee and a staged payment structure, with a portion of commissioning fees withheld until agreed performance and throughput criteria are met.

Hill said the structure was designed to ensure alignment between contractor incentives and operational outcomes.

“Importantly, the contractual framework now in place provides for commissioning to be undertaken against defined performance criteria, with elements of payment linked to the achievement of those outcomes,” he said.

“We believe that this structure appropriately aligns Contractor incentives with delivery of the processing performance we require and represents a further step in the Company's ongoing focus on stabilising and optimising processing performance at the Project.”

Premier added that the agreement allows for completion of all works, commissioning and optimisation within the timeframe of the previously announced Long Stop Date of 5 January 2026.

Subject to logistics, site readiness and ramp-up dynamics, the company expects the upgraded flotation circuit to be commissioned and optimised during the second quarter of 2026.

Premier African Minerals, listed on London’s AIM market under the ticker PREM, holds a multi-commodity portfolio in Southern Africa, including the RHA Tungsten and Zulu Lithium projects in Zimbabwe, as well as other lithium, tantalum and rare earth assets.