admindiscovered by a villager in Rubatika Village recently.
Tantalite yields the metal tantalum, which makes capacitors for premium electronics, including cellphones and computer accessories.
Hundreds of villagers and people from as far as Harare and Norton descended on the village last November, attracting illegal black market buyers.
When council officials and The Herald visited the area yesterday, about 10 illegal panners were busy digging before they bolted into the bush.
Although MRDC has made an effort of rehabilitating the area, there are still signs of illegal activities, with man-made gullies and gaping holes in the area.
MRDC chairman Mr Masimba Rubatika recently said they had to turn to the Zimbabwe Republic Police to restore sanity in the area.
“We have since obtained a prospecting licence from the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development following the discovery of tantalite by a villager,” said Mr Rubatika.
“The council has also registered the claim as Seke Tantalum Syndicate Mine, which is set to be a community project, and we have also engaged the villager who discovered the mineral.”
He said the villager had recently been allocated a stand in Rubatika Village when he stumbled upon the mineral.
“He used to work in a tantalite mine in Bikita and discovered the mineral while looking for quarry stones to build his house,” said Mr Rubatika.
The samples were taken to the University of Zimbabwe Geology Department, which confirmed the mineral. Mr Pasttence Magaya, who discovered the mineral, said he used to work for Ebonite Mine in Bikita and Tsotsi Mine in Buhera.
“I was shocked when I discovered the tantalite as other villagers had also extracted quarry stones from the same area to build their houses,” said Mr Magaya.
He said that when he took the samples for testing at UZ, they had 16 percent tantalum concentration.
Mr Magaya then engaged his family in mining activities and they accessed the tantalite belt, while he sold the mineral for about US$30 per kg on the black market.
They could get up to 20kg per day.
“We woke up one day to find the area invaded by scores of villagers who thought I had discovered gold or diamonds,” said Mr Magaya.
“I then taught them how to identify the tantalite, which I bought from them at US$10 per kg before re-selling it.”
Zimbabwe Geological Survey director Mr Temba Hawadi recently warned MRDC to immediately secure the area.
“If the council has registered the claim, it is mandatory that they secure the area from any further illegal activities,” he said.
“From now on, they will be answerable to any illegal activities that may be taking place including the land degradation.”
He said it was mandatory that all the disposal of the tantalite mineral should be done through the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe.
“The country’s economy is being short-changed through failure by miners — especially artisinal (small scale) — to declare their returns and dispose through the MMCZ, which fuels the black market,” said Mr Hawadi.
In Mashonaland East province, other tantalite deposits have been discovered near Waddilove Mission in Marondera.
Online Reporter