Focus On Eritrea

Eritrea is an emerging mining country situated in the Horn of Africa on the shores of the Red Sea, and bordered by Sudan to the west, Ethiopia to the south and Djibouti to the southeast. Eritrea has around six million inhabitants spread across nine recognized ethnic groups. It became independent from Ethiopia after a referendum in 1993.

Eritrea joined the ranks of mining producers in 2010 with the commissioning of the Bisha Project. This project is owned by the Canadian company Nevsun Resources Ltd and started as a gold producer, but shifted to copper production in 2013 with commissioning of an expanded 2.4 Mtpa flotation plant. Bisha is in the process of expanding the process facilities in preparation for mining of primary zinc ore.

Nevsun has forged a path for others to follow. The Koka Gold Project, owned by the Zara Mining Company, began construction in 2013, and the plant is due to be commissioned at 750,000 tpa later in 2015. Koka is in a more remote area and significant challenges have been overcome to bring the project to fruition.

Two other projects currently in the study and approvals stage are the Asmara VMS gold and base metals deposits owed by Sunridge Gold Corporation and the Colluli Potash Deposit, owed by South Boulder Mines.

All mining projects in Eritrea are owned in varying degrees by the Eritrean National Mining Corporation (ENAMCO) to return benefits of resource development to the Eritrean government.

While it is a relatively small country, Eritrea has favourable geology and seeks to encourage further mining investment. The Eritrean Ministry of Energy and Mines and ENAMCO jointly host the annual Asmara Mining Conference. Presentations at the conference focus on projects within Eritrea, showcasing the continued advancement of mining in Eritrea.

Increasingly, the conference attracts delegates and presenters from the wider region. The 2014 conference, the fifth in the series, had papers on projects in South Sudan as well as Eritrea. The conference is likely to expand as developments in other countries highlight the importance of the Arabian-Nubian shield as an exploration target of the future.

AMC presented the keynote address at the 2014 conference. Mark Chesher entertained the 400 delegates with his thoughts on “Marrying resource and processing” – a challenging topic, which looked at the need for close cooperation of all study disciplines at an early stage of study to ensure a smooth path from study through approvals and on to development.

A critical phase, often not well enough recognized, is the scoping study. Geological and resource data at scoping level is often reasonably well-developed in comparison with other areas of the project and can be used to create options ahead of formal metallurgical testing in order to focus on processing options that are compatible with the deposit mineralogy.

Properly executed, the scoping study outcomes and options analysis lay the groundwork for process flowsheet and value optimization during the succeeding pre-feasibility study stage.

Mark highlighted statistics of studies prepared in the last 10 years to show that many studies fail without proper care to ensure that all factors are considered and risks mitigated during the various levels of study.

AMC has had a significant contribution to the industry in Eritrea with responsibility for the mineral resource, mining geotechnical and mining aspects of both the Koka pre-feasibility study and the Debarwa gold and base metal deposit feasibility study at Asmara and current responsibility for the mining portions of the Colluli Potash Project Prefeasibility study.

Colluli is of particular interest as it is the shallowest known potash deposit in the world, located at the Danakil Depression in northern part of the Afar Triangle, which is one of the lowest-lying places on earth at more than 100 m below sea level. The nature of the project provides several challenges, not least the fact that it regularly gets above 40°C during the day in the summer months.

The Colluli ore is actually various types of salt, including regular rock salt, comprising sylvinite (potassium chloride), carnallitite (potassium magnesium chloride), kainitite (potassium chloride and magnesium sulphate) and bischofite (magnesium chloride).

Eritrea also has a fledgling tourist industry. One of the main attractions is the coastal area around Masawa and the Dahlak Archipelago. More than 200 islands belong to the Dahlak archipelago, designated as a national park, and provide the site for yachting, diving and fishing adventures.

The railway between the capital Asmara and Masawa is a legacy of Italian colonial occupation prior to the Second World War. Construction on the line began at sea level in 1887 in Masawa and reached the capital Asmara at 2,400 m altitude in 1911. The stretch between Nefasit and Asmara is the most remarkable. With 20 tunnels, 65 bridges and viaducts, and an incline of 1:30, this section is a triumph of Italian engineering. The line still functions but is not in regular use at present.

One attraction of the Asmara Mining Conference is the opportunity to experience the Asmara railway. Travelling the line gives a glimpse of what might be possible with some increased investment in the country.

At present the Eritrean railway service provides customized tour services using restored steam and diesel locomotives and historical rolling stock.

Mark Chesher

Open Pit Manager / Principal Mining Engineer

mchesher@amcconsultants.com