Akobo Minerals, a Norway-based gold exploration and mining company, has completed the construction of its processing plant at its boutique mine in South Western Ethiopia.
The company holds an exploration license covering 182 km2 and a 16 km2 mining license in the Segele Shama gold district in the Dima Wereda 720 km southwest of the capital in Gambella Regional State.
Akobo has explored the gold project since 2010 despite completing drilling holes on 59 sites last year. It expects advancements towards low-grade gold processing by next month and forecasts 20 million dollars in revenue in the early months of full production.
The Extraction Industries Transparency Initiative estimates Ethiopia's gold deposits to be around 200tn despite the slow development of industrial gold mining projects.
The National Bank of Ethiopia adjusted its gold procurement strategy two weeks ago to incentivize artisanal miners to resurrect gold exports, which have been dwindling over the past few years. It introduced a tiered pricing system, offering premiums of 60pc on supplies ranging from 50gm to three kilograms and up to 72pc for quantities exceeding 30Kg.
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