eritrean permits for vms

ERITREA Firms Queue Up for Mining Permits
Africa Intelligence, France - 13 hours ago
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Plenty of water has flowed under the bridge since the Minister for Mines, Tesfai Ghebreselassie, who is still in the job, unilaterally suspended the country’s entire mining activity to put legislation governing the sector under review. That was four years ago, and the country’s mining potential was only just being recognised. Above all, the sector was little known to the other government departments which pressured the minister to freeze permits so that he could explain to them what this new economic activity consisted of and what its potential benefits were Ultimately, the “revision” of the mining code in 1995 led to an increase in the government’s stake in Nevsun Resources Ltd’s Bisha project, the only one in an advanced phase of exploration at the time. The Asmara government put a bigger financial contribution, of USD 25 million, on the table for Nevsun. This “error of youth” seems far away today, as activity in the sector is accelerating. Last year the government set up the Eritrean National Mining Corporation (ENAMCO), which limits the minister of mines to the role of the sector’s regulator. In 2007 ENAMCO set up the Bisha Mining Share Co (exploration permit), 40% owned by the state company and 60% by Nevsun. Two new exploration permits were also granted to Eritrea-China Mining & Exploration Company in the Erongo region and to Bejing Donia Resources in the centre of the country, north of Sunridge’s property. In 2008, the country’s first mining permit was granted to Bisha Mining Share Co to develop the Bisha gold mine. Today there are around 15 requests awaiting a response, including: Red Sea Minerals Ltd, Crescent Resources, South Boulder Mines Ltd and G & B Central African Resources for potash at Danakil; Spice Metals & Minerals LLC for gold at Ketina and nickel at Shamighe; Beijing Donia Resources for iron ore at Agameta, Ghedem and Teareshi; Nubian Resources Plc/Gippsland Ltd for Volcanic Massive Sulphide (VMS) at Adhobha); London African Ltd for gold at Harab Suit; Barentu Minerals Ltd/Anvil, Sunridge Gold Corp and Andiamo Exploration Ltd for VMS at Haykota-Gogne; Sub-Sahara for gold at Zara); and India Icicle Exp & Mining Ltd for iron ore at Ghedem.