Oil and mining industry of Niger
The mineral mining industry is a crucial piece of the Economy of Niger. Exports of minerals consistently account for 40% of exports.
Mineral commodities produced in Niger included
Minerals in the National Economy
Niger’s mineral sector accounted for about 3% of the
Uranium
Niger produces about 5% of world uranium output, providing Africa's highest-grade uranium ore. It produced 2,020 tonnes of uranium in 2022, down from 2,991 tonnes in 2020 and 4,821 tonnes in 2012.[5][6]
From the 1950s, Niger has been known to have large uranium deposits in the desert north of the
From 1978 to 2021, the second uranium mining project in
In addition to the mines of SOMAIR and COMINAK, the Azelik mine at 200 kilometres (120 mi) of Arlit was opened in 2011 and operated by SOMINA. The stakeholders in SOMINA are: China National Nuclear Corporation at 37.2%, the government of Niger through the national mining company (SOPAMIN) at 33%, ZXJOY, a Chinese, at 24.8% and KORES, a Korean national company, at 5%.
Uranium ore mined in the Arlit area (Agadez Region) is extracted as Triuranium octoxide. The SOMAIR mine has uranium reserve of 14,000 tonnes (with U3O8 @ 0.3%) as of 2011 and a production capacity of 2,700 tonnes per year.[9][10] The COMINAK concession totaled 29,000 tonnes (U3O8 @ 0.4%) and had a production capacity of 1,500 tonnes per year.[9][10] The Azelik mine operated by SOMINA has a production rate of 700 tonnes per year in 2011, and is expected to increase to 2500 tonnes per year by 2015.[11]
The
Coal
The history of coal exploration and mining dates back to 1968 when coal reserves were discovered in Anou Araren by an exploration team led by the French Atomic Commission
The Anou Araren coal reserves are estimated at 15 million tonnes and in 2011, 246,016 tonnes of coal were extracted from the mine.[15][16] The coal reserves at Salkadamna are estimated at 70 million tonnes.[15]
Gold
Exploitable deposits of gold have long been known to exist in south western region of Niger and more recently in northern region of Agadez. Artisanal gold mining was already conducted between the Niger River and the border with Burkina Faso.[17] In 2004, the Samira Hill Gold Mine, operated by Mining company of Liptako, began production. The mining company of Liptako owned by two Canadian companies at 40% each and the government of Niger at 20%. The gold production in 2011 is 1,564 kg from this mine and has decreased steadily since 2008.[18] In 2014, two gold deposits have been found in the Agadez Region in Djado and Mount Ibl, 700 and 360 km from Agadez city, respectively.[19][20] The site in Djado was discovered in April 2014 and resulted in a gold rush that attracted local inhabitants of Agadez as well as prospectors from neighboring countries like Chad, Sudan and Burkina Faso. Activities at the Djado site were temporarily ceased in order to organize exploration and artisanal extraction activities, to improve infrastructures, principally water supply and to improve the security presence. The site near Mount Ibl was discovered in September 2014. Exploration permits are required for all prospectors prior to accessing the sites.
Cement
The cement extraction industry has existed in Niger since 1964 when the Malbaza cement plant was opened.[21] Located in the Tahoua Region, the cement plant has been the only such project until 2014. In 2011, work for expanding the cement plant of Malbaza began with the expectation to increase its production capacity 13-fold. In 2014, work began for a new cement plant in Keita in the Tahoua Region.[22]
The Malbaza cement plant presently produces 40,000 tonnes per year and, upon expansion, is expected to reach 540,000 tonnes per year.[21] The Keita cement under construction is expected to produce 1 million tonnes per year at startup and 1.5 million tonnes per year afterwards.[22]
Labor issues
According to the
See also
- Petroleum industry in Niger
- Economy of Niger
- List of countries by gold production
- List of countries by uranium production
- Uranium reserves(list by nation)
References
- ^ Uranium information Centre Ltd., 2007, World uranium mining—nuclear issues briefing paper 41: Melbourne, Australia, uranium information Centre Ltd., July. (accessed November 1, 2007, at "World Uranium Mining". Archived from the original on 2008-03-03. Retrieved 2008-04-15. .)
- ^ Public Domain, and large portions of it are reproduced here verbatim.
- ^ International Monetary Fund, 2007b, p. 5; 2007c, p. 9
- ^ International Monetary Fund, 2007a, p. 9
- ^ a b Onstad, Eric (31 July 2023). "Niger is among the world's biggest uranium producers". Reuters. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
- ^ Production and exportation de l'uranium Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ [1] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine COMINAK, The largest underground uranium mine
- ISBN 0-8108-3136-8.
- ^ a b c Brighton Energy Discovers Additional Uranium Mineralization in Niger Archived 2012-10-02 at the Wayback Machine. Orezone Gold Corporation, Marketwire, 2011-05-16.
- ^ a b [2] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Positioning Niger's mining & industrial sector to win
- ^ OpenOil : La SOMINA Archived 2021-03-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Areva NC, 2006, reference document: Paris, France, areva nv, 392 p. p. 62-71
- ^ [3] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Imouraren mine opening delayed
- ^ [4] Archived 2014-06-28 at the Wayback Machine Beginning of construction for the Salkadamna coal and power plant complex
- ^ a b [5] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Drivers and Impediments Regional Cooperation on the Way to Sustainable Nuclear Energy Systems
- ^ [6] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine La production du charbon au Niger - Annuaire statistique du Niger 2011
- ^ Background Note:Niger Archived 2019-05-24 at the Wayback Machine, United States State Department, Bureau of Public Affairs: Electronic Information and Publications Office. Bureau of African Affairs. September 2008. This article incorporates text from this U.S. government source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ [7] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Production de produit mineraux Table 27.02
- ^ Discovery of Gold Deposit in Djado in Agadez Archived 2014-10-20 at the Wayback Machine.Last accessed on 9/20/2014
- ^ Discovery of a new Gold Deposit around Mount Ibl in Agadez Archived 2014-09-13 at the Wayback Machine.Last accessed 9/20/2014
- ^ a b [8] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Awaiting for the cement plant of Malbaza
- ^ a b [9] Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Launching of construction work for the second cement plant in Niger in Keita, Tahoua
- ^ "Niger, 2013 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor". Archived from the original on 2015-03-03. Retrieved 2015-04-04.
- U.S. geological Survey Minerals yearbook, volume iii, area reports—international— africa and the Middle east,.
- International Monetary Fund, 2007a, Fourth review under the three-year arrangement under the poverty reduction and growth facility and request for waiver and modification of performance criteria: Washington, dC, International Monetary Fund, July, 45 p.
- International Monetary Fund, 2007b, Letter of intent, memorandum of economic and financial policies of the government of Niger for 2007, and technical memorandum of understanding for 2007: Washington, dC, International Monetary Fund, 21 p.
- International Monetary Fund, 2007c, Letter of intent, memorandum of economic and financial policies, and technical memorandum of understanding: Washington, dC, International Monetary Fund, May 16, 23 p.
- Mining Journal, 2006, China in Niger: Mining Journal, July 21, p. 1.