Ministry Grants Three Exploration Licenses

Apr 26 , 2019


[ssba-buttons]

The Ministry of Mines & Petroleum has given exploration concessions to three companies to explore gold, metals and coal in Tigray, Amhara and Benishangul-Gumuz regional states. The companies are expected to invest 31 million Br and employ 46 people for the exploration work, according to Samuel Urkato, minister of Mines & Petroleum. A total of 56 companies have requested concessions to explore different minerals in Ethiopia, and those that have fulfilled the Ministry’s criteria are being awarded, according to Samuel. The Ministry also awarded mineral exploration concessions in the Amhara and Tigray regional states to six companies a week ago. Five of the companies will be engaged in the exploration of metals, while one will be exploring limestone. The mining industry has slumped in the past few years, with earnings from exports dropping to 130 million dollars last year from 600 million dollars seven years ago.


Radar

US Renews National Emergency, Sanctions on Ethiopia

The United States has extended the national emergency and sanctions on Ethiopia for another year under the African Growth & Opportunity Act (AGOA). Signed by President Donald J. Trump, the measure was first declared on September 17, 2021, through an executive order citing the conflict in northern region of the country as an "unusual and extraordinary" threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy. The extension, effective until September 17, 2026, keeps in place restrictions targeti...


Radar

Rockefeller Pitches Clean Cooking to Curb School Meal Emissions

A recent study has revealed the staggering environmental toll of school feeding programs. A single school serving 400 students can burn through the equivalent of 56 hectares of forest each year to fuel cooking. The Rockefeller Foundation flagged the health risks too, with most cooks, predominantly women, breathing smoke levels ten times higher than the World Health Organisation's safe limit. "If every school meal transitioned to clean cooking with electricity and solar, the emissions saved wo...


Radar

Sun-Powered Grid Brings Light to Qunbi District

A new 600KW solar mini-grid in East Hararge'sQunbi district has connected 2,200 households to electricity, marking a milestone in the recent rural electrification push. Ethiopian Electric Utility (EEU) laid seven kilometres of medium-voltage and 10 kilometres of low-voltage lines, installing four transformers to reach communities long cut off from power. Customers cover only meter and installation costs before accessing the service. The project is part of the national strategy to expand energ...