Solid Minerals
Huge Mongolia copper mine begins shipments: Rio Tinto
ULAN BATOR — A huge $6.2 billion copper mine in Mongolia that could transform the sprawling nation’s fortunes has started exports, resources giant Rio Tinto said Tuesday.
The Oyu Tolgoi project in the Gobi desert, at one of the richest copper deposits in the world, has been years in development and was hit by a series of last-minute delays due to political wrangling.
It is expected to produce an average of 430,000 tonnes of copper and 425,000 ounces of gold annually for 20 years, said Anglo-Australian Rio Tinto, which has majority control of the mine.
The open pit section will be deep enough to stack the Great Pyramid of Giza on top of itself four times, it said in a statement.
The deepest underground shaft is eight times deeper than the English Channel and the copper concentrator contains enough steel to build three Eiffel Towers.
Mongolia is one of the world’s most sparsely populated countries but is undergoing a resources boom, and the mine is vital to its economy.
At the opening ceremony Tuesday mining minister Davaajav Gankhuyag said it was a “pleasure” to note it would increase the country’s total exports by 30 to 40 percent.
The mine will generate up to one-third of government revenue by 2019, according to previous estimates, potentially allowing Ulan Bator to spend heavily on infrastructure and education if corruption can be kept in check.
Jean-Sebastien Jacques, Rio Tinto’s chief executive for copper, said it had taken “the vision and hard work of thousands of people to get to this point”.
“We are starting to convert the rich resources beneath the desert into real wealth and opportunity for all stakeholders, including the Mongolian people,” he said.
The outlook for copper was strong, he added, and “with continued development, Oyu Tolgoi will generate wealth for many decades to come”.
Exports from the mine were initially planned for last month but were held up by a series of disputes, including an alleged demand by the government that Rio Tinto keep all export revenue in Mongolia, prompting claims of “resource nationalism”.
Mongolian officials have denied the accusations, blaming the delays on the mine operator’s unwillingness to disclose its sales agreements.
“The stakeholders will sort out in the nearest future every question that might lead to misunderstanding and arguments in the future,” Gankhuyag said at the ceremony, adding that “shared determination and trust” was needed to reach a “better tomorrow”.
The mine has also faced objections on environmental grounds, with herders citing its potential impact on livestock due to dust.
The Mongolian government has a 34 percent stake in Oyu Tolgoi while a Rio Tinto-controlled firm has the remaining 66 percent.
Business
Nigeria set to boost Naira value and foreign reserve with local gold production, as Tinubu receives gold bar
IN a significant move to strengthen Nigeria’s economy, President Bola Tinubu received a symbolic gold bar on Sunday from the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake.
This gesture marks the commencement of the National Gold Purchase Program (NGPP), aimed at boosting the naira’s value and enhancing the country’s foreign reserves.
Minister Alake expressed gratitude to President Tinubu for his support of reforms in the solid minerals sector.
He highlighted that the NGPP, which involves sourcing gold from artisanal and small-scale miners and refining it to meet the London Bullion Market Association’s Good Delivery Standard, will substantially contribute to Nigeria’s economic stability.
Alake stated “This initiative will significantly increase our foreign reserves and strengthen the naira. The refined gold will be supplied to the Central Bank of Nigeria, marking a crucial step in our economic strategy.”
The presentation also underscored the first commercial transaction under the NGPP, establishing a centralized gold purchasing system that integrates small-scale miners, cooperatives, and production units across the nation.
This program is expected to provide a structured market for gold, fostering economic growth and stability.
He said, “The successful completion of the first commercial transaction clearly demonstrates the National Gold Purchase Program’s effectiveness. It has increased the nation’s foreign reserves assets and shown that using the Nigerian Naira to purchase a liquid asset traded in United States Dollars, such as gold, is a viable strategy. This transaction has also underscored the potential of the National Gold Purchase Program to enhance fiscal and monetary stability.”
Alake added that the initial commercial transaction under the program resulted in a +US$5 million boost in Nigeria’s foreign reserve assets.
The transaction involved refining over 70 kilograms of gold to meet the London Bullion Market quality standard and aggregating locally mined gold, thereby infusing approximately NGN6 billion into the rural economy.
President Tinubu expressed appreciation for the Ministry’s accomplishment in advancing the government’s goal of economic diversification by acknowledging and displaying the symbolic gold bar
The Nigerian Government has threatened to come down heavily on foreigners sponsoring bandictory as a way of sustaining illegal mining activities in parts of the country.
The warning was handed down in Abuja by Minister, Solid Minerals Development, Dr Oladele Alake, while receiving a delegation of the Nigeria-China Chamber of Mines led by its National President, Dr. Olugbenga Ajala.
Details of these were contained in a statement released by Head, Press & PR, Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, Alaba Balogun over the weekend.
The statement cited, Dr Alake, thus, “The government will come down firmly on these unscrupulous foreign operators sponsoring banditry to perpetrate illegal mining: let me use this medium to appeal through you to tell those sponsors to desist or face the full wrath of the law.”
According to Dr Alake, the Ministry is committed to establishing a multi-agency task force that will end the activities of illegal miners and their collaborators.
The Minster made it clear that the FG had given illegal miners a 30-day-ultimatum to legitimise their businesses, quit Nigeria or incur the wrath of the law.
According to him, this will help “to streamline and structure the Small-Scale Artisanal Miners for maximum yield to the Federal Government.”
The delegation paid a courtesy call on the Minsiter at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja.
By Edozie Obasi-Eze
Amidst heightening uncertainties in the domestic petroleum products market characterised by scarcity and irregular pricing, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has declared that there’s no intention to review pump prices upwards.
This was contained in an advisory issued by General Manager, Corporate Communications, NMDPRA, Kimchi Apollo.
He stated that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) had imported PMS with current stock levels sufficient for 34 days.
In an attempt to address panic buying and speculations which have seen price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) oscillate between N180-N250 in the Lagos area, Apollo assured that there was enough quantity of the product in the country already.
He said, “Consequently, marketers and the general public are advised to avoid panic buying, diversion of products and hoarding.
“In keeping with the Authority’s responsibilities as outlined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Authority assures the public that it would continue to monitor the supply and distribution of petroleum products nationwide, especially during this holiday season.”
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