Ethiopia suspends gold mining firm's licence after weeks of protests
ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopia has suspended a gold mining firm's licence after weeks of protests in a town near the mine by local people who accuse the company of polluting their source of water and the atmosphere, a government official said.
"The ministry suspended the licence in response to the demands of the people," Bacha Faji, a spokesperson for Ethiopia’s Ministry of Mines, Petroleum and Natural Gas, told State-affiliated television Fana.
Owned by Ethiopian-born Saudi billionaire Mohammed Hussein al-Amoudi, Midroc Gold Mine has operated the opencast mine in Guji zone of the Oromia region for more than two decades.
The government’s decision to renew the mining licence for Midroc’s Lega Dembi mine last month led to two weeks of protests by Guji zone residents who accuse the company of polluting the environment and the Lega Dembi River and allege that the pollution is linked to a range of illnesses.
The company did not respond to requests for comment and has not commented on the matter in the past.
The mining firm's owner, Amoudi, was among dozens of Saudi royals and top businessmen detained last year in an anti-corruption drive and is believed to be still held in Saudi Arabia.
According to Midroc's website, the gold mine has an average annual production of 4.5 t.
Bacha said an independent body has been formed and had begun an impact assessment study of Midroc’s operations.
It was not clear how long the assessment would take. Bacha said the final decision will depend on the outcome of the study.
Comments
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
SBS® Tanks is a leading provider of innovative water security solutions with offices in Southern Africa, East and West Africa, the USA and an...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Multotec, recognised industry leaders in metallurgy and process engineering help mining houses across the world process minerals more efficiently,...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
