© Morganix 26 Jun 2024

Balama Mine

This mine is full of Vanadium in the real world. That is also true for Earth 2. This article will guide you on where to find it.

Background image from the "Balama Graphite Operation" article listed in the Documentation section ³

In the Balama Mine ¹, you can have T2 tiles with copious Vanadium for E$0,67 / tile (as I write). Later they can be upgraded to T1 for E$0,30 / tile.

There's no use in buying tiles in this location if you don't plan to upgrade, because Vanadium can only be mined from T1 properties. Also, the mine has no other resources at the moment.

However, copious Vanadium can be somewhat hard to find at a reasonable price. So if you need it, you can find it here.

The location

Balama Mine is owned by Syrah Resources ². The company runs two projects at the site:

1) Balama Graphite Project
2) Balama Vanadium Project

The Balama Graphite Project has also been referred to as the "Balama Graphite Operation" ³. If Graphite should be implemented in E2's resources collection in the future, Balama Mine will have it.

The left image below links to an article by Mining Technology News. It's titled "Balama Graphite Project" and contains a description of the Graphite and Vanadium projects as well as Syrah Resources's map of the mine. This map is a valuable source of information about the location. First of all, it shows where the two quarries are/were located.

The right-hand image links to our Reference Map. It will show you reference points in Balama as they appear on the Earth 2 map. I recommend opening the map in a separate window.


• Syrah Resources's Map of the mine.
• Reference Map showing locations in Balama in E2.

Examining the Reference Map locations

The Reference Map shows the current situation in the Balama Mine on Earth 2. Existing properties are colored cyan (turquoise). The white numbers refer to the locations in the coordinates list provided at the end of this section, making it easy to jump between the numbered spots in E2.

I have transferred some elements from Syrah Resources's map to the Reference Map for easier recognition. Among those, are the "West Pit" and East Pit"; the actual mining areas. The East Pit area does not look very much like a quarry on the E2 map, and the TFS and Mine Village areas also look different from what we see in Syrah Resources' map.

Obviously, there have been changes in the mine layout from what we see on Syrah Resources's map, either before or after the images used in the Earth 2 map were created. Syrah Resources started construction of the Balama Project in 2014 and the article we got their map from was published March 22 2019 . So Syrah Resources's map was made before March 22 2019, and the images that make up the Earth 2 map may be newer than that. Anyway, it's Vanadium all over the place.

Syrah Resources' map has three TSF units, TSF - Cell 1-3. On the E2 map, there's only one, large "pool". I searched Google to learn what "TSF" means and found:

«Tailing storage facilities (TSFs) are reservoirs that store mine tailings, which is fine-grained waste material in suspension that is discharged from an ore processing plant or coal preparation plant.»

Coordinates:

1) -13.3056, 38.65797
2) -13.31579, 38.641834
3) -13.32548, 38.648701
4) -13.31696, 38.661404
5) -13.31212, 38.672905
6) -13.32548, 38.66518

Assumed Resource Area

Now, to the big question: How large is the Vanadium resource Area? It's impossible to know for sure. But I guess it will be at least within the circle with the white, dotted line on the Reference Map, marked "Assumed Resource Area". Now I will tell you why I made that guess:

All existing tiles in the Balama Mine were bought long ago when there were only eight known resources, and no one knew what other resources we could expect to pop up later on. As time passed and new resources were released, nothing popped up in Balama. Then, one day, I found documentation about the Vanadium occurrence and hurried to make a Resource Claim (claim no 174093). The property used for the claim is marked with a red dot ( ) on the Reference Map and is located in the East Pit area at the location:

-13.309866, 38.673849

As shown on the Reference Map, my property is over at the east end of the mine where there is no sign of mining activity on the E2 map. When the claim was approved, all the properties in the Balama Mine area were assigned copious Vanadium, suggesting the resource area for Vanadium was drawn as a circular shape around the whole mine – and which I suspect resembles the "Assumed Resource Area" I have drawn on the Reference Map.

Concession Area

Syrah Resources' concession area for the Balama Project is much larger than our "Assumed Resource Area", according to a map from an Environmental Audit Report, (page 9) . This could also mean that the resource area is larger – at least in the real world.

I have added our "Assumed Resource Area" and the outlines of the West and East Pits to the map.

Map from PDF document «Environmental Audit Report – Operational Phase»

The Environmental Audit Report was published in January 2021, so this map may be newer than the one from Syrah Resources. However, this map has a single, large TSF pool north of the Processing Plant, and both facilities look quite similar to what we can see on the E2 map. If we compare it with the current map on Google Maps – which probably is the most up-to-date – it resembles the map on Earth 2. However, the TSF area has been expanded, and the "Balama Solar Plant" has been constructed on the right side.

In Earth 2, there are tiles all over the Processing Plant. And there are some tiles in the TFS too. None of them are in the vicinity of the mining areas. But even they have copious Vanadium in the Balama Mine. That Vanadium does certainly not come from the Plant itself or from the tailings in the TFS – but from the ground below, indicating that the whole area may be full of it: At least within our "Assumed Resource Area".

Documentation

¹ Balama Mine https://miningdataonline.com/property/1033/Balama-Mine.aspx

² Syrah Resources Website https://www.syrahresources.com.au/

³ Balama Graphite Operation https://www.syrahresources.com.au/our-business/balama-graphite-operation

⁴ Balama Graphite Project https://www.mining-technology.com/projects/balama-graphite-project/

⁵ Syrah wins Balama Graphite and Vanadium project licence in Mozambique https://www.mining-technology.com/marketdata/newssyrah-wins-balama-graphite-and-vanadium-project-licence-in-mozambique-4150920/

⁶ Guidance about tailings storage https://www.dmp.wa.gov.au/Safety/Guidance-about-tailings-storage-6556.aspx

⁷ Balama Graphite Project – Twigg Exploration & Mining Ltd Environmental Audit Report – Operational Phase
https://www3.dfc.gov/environment/eia/syrahbalama/EnvAuditReportOperationalPhase.pdf