The mining agreement was concluded on Tuesday July 30 with the Cameroon Mining and Alumina Company, CAMALCO SA, the Cameroonian subsidiary of the Australian company Canyon Resources Ltd.
Professor Fuh Calistus Gentry, Minister of Mines, Industry and Technology Development, signed the agreement on behalf of the government, while the Managing Director of CAMALCO SA, Rana Pratap Singh, signed the agreement on behalf of his company.
The signing ceremony was held in the presence of the Ministers of Employment and Vocational Training, Issa Tchiroma Bakari, of Domains, Cadastre and Land, Henri Eyebe Ayissi, and the Minister of Delegation to the Minister of Finance, Yaouba Abdoulaye.
The director general of Cameroon Telecommunications, CAMTEL, Judith Yah Sunday epse Achidi, was also present.
Professor Fuh Calistus announced that the mining convention is in line with the new mining policy ordered by the President of the Republic, and defined by Law No. 2023/014 on 19 December 2023 on the Mining Code.
He also said that the Minim-Martap bauxite project is an economically profitable, environmentally sustainable and socially responsible mining project.
Regarding technical and financial capabilities, the minister assured that CAMALCO’s partner, Eagle Eye Asset Holding, is an important partner with strong technical and financial capabilities in the bauxite-alumina sector.
“As for the detailed content of the project, it aims to optimize the Minim-Martap bauxite deposit by extracting 5 million tons of bauxite, converting bauxite to alumina, transporting the those products through the existing Ngaoundéré-Yaoundé-Douala railway infrastructure and export them. to the port of Douala or to the mining terminal of the autonomous port of Kribi,” said Professor Fuh Calistus.
Minister Fuh Calistus noted that the feasibility study submitted by CAMALCO shows that the project will include mining, railways, an ore terminal and a bauxite-to-processing plant -alumina.
He said that the company will also set up a power generation unit to power the factory and other units of the project.
“In terms of mining aspects, the project is affordable for financial institutions and is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange from July 22, 2022. A groundbreaking ceremony for an open mine is planned for 2025,” said the minister.
While it specifies that the feasibility study on the unit for converting bauxite to alumina would be developed by the company DELOITTE and should be submitted to the government within two years from date sign the operating license.
He explained that the project plan also shows that the processing unit was expected to be completed within six months after the detailed feasibility study was submitted.
In addition, the minister pointed out that the infrastructures related to mining activities were subject to special contracts to be signed between CAMALCO SA and the relevant structures, such as Bollore Africa Railways and CAMRAIL for the railways, and the autonomous ports of Douala and Kribi for the railway. mine boundary.
He specified that construction work on the railway between Makor and Douala should begin within six months after the signing of the operating license.
According to the interim Minister of Mines, the signed agreement offers beneficial socio-economic benefits to local and indigenous populations and to Cameroon in general.
“CAMALCO SA also intends to develop infrastructure, mix Cameroonian populations of different origins, transfer technologies, establish internships for students, develop the scope of the project, increase the purchasing power of local communities, to get the first Cameroonian mining experience and to attract other mining investors, both expatriates and nationals,” he said.
In addition to the creation of more than a thousand direct jobs and several indirect jobs, the project will make a significant contribution to the national economy from the first year of production.
Regarding the annual financial benefits of the project, he explained that the government has a free share of 10%, an ad valorem tax of 5% of the market value, a production share of 3% of the market value, from a development fund in the mining sector at the rate of 1% of sales excluding taxes.
He also announced the special account for the development of capacity at the rate of 1% of sales excluding taxes, the export tax at the rate of 2%, the State concession fees set at 100,000 FCFA/Km2/year and 10% of the capital of project company for the nationals.
While announcing the various benefits of the project, the member of the government urged local authorities such as mayors, representatives and senators to do everything to support the project.
“As for the local community affected by the project, it will benefit from support from the ad valorem tax for the benefit of the affected towns and the special account for the development of local capacities, submitted for the implementation of local content “, he said. .
The minister also indicated that CAMALCO will contribute to the fund for the rehabilitation, restoration and closure of mining sites, and the annual contribution will be determined according to the estimated costs for the environmental conservation and rehabilitation program established by mutual agreement between the two parties.
For his part, the CEO of CAMALCO, Rana Pratap Singh, said that the signing ceremony marked an important milestone for turning the concession into a mining license.
“As soon as we have this operating license, all our activities will be boosted thanks to the increased confidence of investors and we will be able to engage in real negotiations with the logistics partners to be ready, in about two years to start mining operations,” he noted.
According to him, the project is not only a win-win project for CAMALCO and the country, but an added value for Cameroon.
“The investment is one of the best investments in the world, but it is still young due to the supply problems, but we have investors who have a very high potential, both financially and technically, to solve the supply problems to our expertise in the mining sector,” he said.