Malawi mining minister clears Kangankunde rare earths project of illegal exports after parliamentary scrutiny

Malawi’s mining minister Thoko Tembo has told parliament that government inspections at the Kangankunde Rare Earth project in Balaka have found no evidence of illegal mining or unauthorised mineral exports, moving to allay concerns raised by MPs over the operations of one of the country’s most closely watched extractive projects.

Tembo was responding to findings by the Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources, Energy and Climate Change, which had flagged concerns over blasting activity, stockpiled ore and the export of mineral samples from the site.

The committee’s scrutiny reflects growing parliamentary interest in ensuring that Malawi’s nascent rare earths sector, seen as a potential source of export revenue and foreign investment, operates within a robust regulatory framework from the outset.

The minister told the House that materials exported from the site had been approved for testing, laboratory analysis and other technical purposes, in line with existing regulatory requirements governing the sector.

He said government would continue to monitor the project through regular inspections involving the Ministry of Mining, the Malawi Mining Regulatory Authority and other relevant agencies, to ensure ongoing compliance with the country’s mining laws.

The reassurance comes at a sensitive moment for Malawi’s mining sector, as the government seeks to position the country as a credible destination for critical minerals investment amid a global scramble for the raw materials that underpin the energy transition.

The Kangankunde project, owned by Australian company Lindian Resources, is being developed to extract rare earth elements including dysprosium and terbium – minerals used in the permanent magnets that power electric vehicle motors and wind turbines, and for which demand has surged as governments worldwide accelerate efforts to decarbonise transport and electricity generation.

Rare earths projects across Africa have drawn increasing attention from investors seeking to diversify supply chains away from China, which dominates global processing capacity.

For Malawi, a country with a relatively small mining sector by regional standards, Kangankunde represents a test case for how effectively domestic institutions can regulate a strategically significant industry while reassuring both investors and the public that resources are being extracted transparently and lawfully.