"Various rights, taxes and royalties that are applied in Cameroon are extraordinarily high compared to the world prices and should this be fully applied in the Mbalam iron ore exploitation project, the project will not be economically competitive at the international level," said Jones, who is also non-executive chairman of Sundance, on state television.
The interview was recorded after the Australian company boss met Cameroon's Prime Minister Ephraim Inoni on Friday to discuss the project, which is running behind schedule.
CamIron said at the start of 2008 that it expected to sign an MOU with the government in March. [ID:nL21778820]
The concern raised by Sundance highlights the administrative bottlenecks identified by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and potential investors as one of the greatest handicaps to doing business in Cameroon.
Mbalam could be one of the world's biggest iron ore mines, with enough resources to provide 35 million tonnes per year for 20 years, according to company figures