Source from (Gulf Times): http://www.gulf-times.com/business/191/details/354564/sudan-aims-to-produce-50-tonnes-of-gold-in-2013
Published: May 31, 2013
Abdel-Latif: Ambitious target.
Gold has become Sudan’s biggest export,
partially replacing oil revenues that made up more than 50% of state
income until 2011, when South Sudan became independent and took with it
most of Sudan’s oil reserves.
Sudan will produce 50 tonnes of gold this year
from traditional, manual techniques alone, up from 42 tonnes last year,
said the minister, Kamal Abdel-Latif. Sudan produced around 50 tonnes in
total last year.
Half a million individual miners make up the
bulk of the country’s gold production, but reliable data is hard come
by. Part of the output gets smuggled into neighbouring countries to be
sold on major gold markets such as Dubai.
The country also has more modern, mechanised
mines, the biggest of which, Hassai, is undergoing investment to drill
deeper as its surface deposits are largely exhausted.
Hassai’s production data has been difficult to
acquire since its owner, Canada-based La Mancha, was bought last year by
Egyptian business tycoon Naguib Sawiris and was delisted. Eight mining
firms produce in Sudan, the minister said, adding that more than 80
others were still at the exploration stage.
Abdel-Latif’s forecast for chromium production of 40,000 tonnes is roughly in line with previous forecasts.
Industry executives say Sudan is high on the
list of exploration firms in Africa because much of the vast country is
unexplored. US sanctions and Sudan’s multiple conflicts have deterred
many firms in the past, but investor interest is now on the rise due to
high gold prices.
Sudan has handed out exploration licences to companies from China, Turkey, Morocco, Russia, Iran and other countries.
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