Aerial view of the process plant at Paladin’s Kayelekera mine in Malawi

Blantyre, Malawi --- MININGREVIEW.COM --- 21 December 2009 - Two strong earthquakes hit northern Malawi and southwestern Tanzania over the weekend, with the U.S. Geological Survey’s initial reports indicating no serious damage or injuries.

Reuters reports from here that a 6.2 magnitude quake hit 135 km south of the town of Mbeya in Tanzania at a depth of 6.2 10 km. Another earthquake 15.2 km deep and measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale struck the uranium-rich Karonga district of northern Malawi, but once again there has been no material impact on the Kayelekera uranium mine in the area.

Paladin Energy Limited – a uranium production company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, the Toronto Stock Exchange and the Namibian Stock Exchange – confirmed that its mine operations in northern Malawi had not been affected by the quakes.

“There has not been any impact at all. The mine is designed to withstand earth movements greater than the current range,” Paladin spokesman Neville Huxman told Reuters.

The same region was struck by a series of earthquakes and aftershocks earlier this month in which one person was killed and two injured. Some 3 000 Malawians are still living in makeshift shelters following structural damage to their homes.

Earlier this week the government of Malawi appealed for help from the public to cater for the displaced by providing food, blankets and tents.