Kaboko Mining, formerly Uran, has entered into agreements with major Chinese steel manufacturers for trial shipments of high grade manganese ore ahead of the finalization of a long term off take agreement.

The 210 tonne and 300 tonne shipments, from Kaboko's Zambian Manganese Projects, have been loaded at the port of Beira in Mozambique and are headed to the ports of Xinganag and Xiamen in China.

The trial shipments are to be used at the respective Chinese steel manufacturers’ furnaces in China.

Kaboko has had the trial shipments of ore sampled at its storage facilities at Kabwe in Zambia, which confirms the shipments have an average grade of about 59% manganese.

The trial shipments have been sold at a price based on BHP Billiton's reference price (expressed in USD per dry metric ton unit), CIF China basis.

Debt financing discussions are expected to be finalized in the current March quarter.

The first of the new fleet of mining equipment for Kaboko's Zambian operations has arrived following the wet season and further mine optimization studies.

The equipment will enable the company to look to increase production at the Chowa Open Pit over the next two quarters.

Further equipment, comprising a further two articulated dump trucks, are scheduled to arrive onsite in Zambia later in the March 2012 quarter.

Kaboko is also targeting the completion of a debt financing agreement in the March quarter.

The company has continued negotiations on structured debt financing that will be used to further advance its Zambian Manganese Projects.

(Sourced from www.proactiveinvestors.com.au)