Sudan signs gold exploration agreements

April 28, 2010 (KHARTOUM) — The Sudanese minister of Energy and Mining Al-Zubair Ahmed Al-Hassan signed gold exploration agreements with five international companies this week.

The companies included one from Chechnya company headed Sheikh Musa & Maussane which won the concession in box 30 in the Wadi Miskeen in the Red Sea state. The Paramount Mining company from India will work in the Wadi Al-Sankir box 28, which is located in West Berber in North Sudan.

The Faroun for Indian metals Metal Hindi received concession Wadi Abu Khasous in West Atbara area located in Northeastern Sudan.

Abu-Mast concession in the Northern state was awarded to box 17 by a company Tahi Global miner, a Turkish company. It also received the authorization to exploit another gold zone named Hamasana in the Red Sea State.

Sudan state media quoted the representatives of the firms that signed the agreements as having a genuine desire to explore and exploit the minerals, as well as an indignation about the responsibility towards the development of areas around the concessions.

Last October Sudan’s energy and mining minister told Reuters that the country was witnessing a “gold rush” with an explosion of small-time prospecting and commercial concessions going to new companies.

The minister said Sudan had also been handing out mining concessions in its Nile, Northern and Southern Kordofan states, adding one field alone had proven reserves of 30 tonnes.

(ST)