Mining investment in Mozambique increased by nearly eight times 
between 2004 and 2008, the country’s Natural Resources Minister, Esperança Bias, reported to Parliament, in Maputo, recently.

The amount of direct investments in mining rocketed from $101-million in 2004 to $804-million last year, while the value of mining production rose by a similar proportion, from $35,2-million to $275-million.

By way of illustration, Bias cited Kenmare Resources’ $460-million titanium mine at Moma, in the north of the country. The mine is 
employing 1 582 people during its construction phase and will create 450 permanent jobs. The government has already collected $380 000 in taxes from this project.

Meanwhile, Mozambique has granted a mining concession licence to Australian company Riversdale Mining for the $800-million Benga coal project in the north-east of the country. The mining contract was signed by Bias, in Tete, in mid-May. Benga, which will produce both thermal coal and hard coking coal, is 65%-owned by Riversdale and 35% by major Indian steelmaker Tata Steel.

With the signing of the contract, all that remains before the effective start of the project is the completion of the feasibility study. The company extended the deadline for completion of the study so that it would be able to incorporate the financial arrangements 
established in the mining contract. Riversdale expects to start production in the last quarter 
of next year.

In April, the company was able to unveil its latest reserve and resource estimates for Benga, which showed an increase of 90% over the previous estimates, announced last September. 
Benga now has proved coal reserves of 181,3-million tons, probable coal reserves of 92-million tons, and 1 033,9-million tons of measured and indicated resources, of which 893,4-million tons lies at a depth of less than 500 m. 
The total Benga coal resource is now estimated at four-billion tons.

The company plans to intially produce 5,3-million tons of coal a year, rising to 10-million tons annually, and finally reaching 20-million tons yearly, once the necessary transport infrastructure is established.

Riversdale holds other coal expoloration concessions in the Tete province, adjacent to mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce’s Moatize concession. 
The Australian company’s exploration concessions in Mozambqiue now exceed 
250 000 ha.

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