Angola Minerals Potential

Angola has 36 of the 51 critical Minerals in the world.The national director of Minerals Resources, André Buta Neto, said this on Wednesday that the country has 36 of the 51 critical Minerals world wide, some of which are about to enter the production phase.The official who was speaking at the 2nd Banking & Mining Forum, organized by Bumbar Mining, said that the resources were identified within the scope of the National Geology Plan (PLANAGEO), reconfirming surveys already carried out during the colonial era.Among other resources, there are diamonds, zircon, quartz, tourmaline, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, gold, silver, platinum and copper in Angola.Critical minerals are thus classified according to their restricted geological location, high relevance for industry and supply risks, some of which are considered essential in the energy transition.Angola's investment in these resources is "still incipient" if one looks at the range of minerals confirmed by the study", said Buta Neto, noting that the mining sector is a risky bet, as only 10 percent of the projects in prospect can reach mine.Angola has already started producing gold and manganese, and hopes to soon start producing rare earths, titanium and lithium, which "are at an advanced stage of prospecting".In the next two years, the production of neodymium and praseodymium, used in the manufacture of batteries for electric cars, as well as copper and niobium, is expected to begin."It means that Angola, in the next five years, will be able to make a big leap in terms of mining", said the official.On the other hand, he stressed that the restructuring of the mining sector over the last five years has given investors greater confidence, which has brought the big players closer to Angola's mining sector."With this step other companies will be able to come, once they gain this trust", he reinforced.At the moment, in addition to large companies such as Rio Tinto and DeBeers, which returned to Angola this year, "junior" companies are starting to appear that are exploring, for example, rare earths and phosphates.André Buta Neto also defended a closer relationship between the financial sector and the mining industry, which is still dominated by diamonds, which represent three percent of Angola's Gross Domestic Product (GDP)."We have to have greater dissemination of the facilities within the mining sector, which did not exist before. Banking works with investment and return and when there is no security in return, no one accepts to put money without guarantee that they will recover their investment and this has been the bank's performance", he pointed out.He believes, however, that the "banks are beginning to see that, in fact, it is worth investing in the mining sector", considering that meetings of this kind help to bring the two sectors closer together.He also stated that the possibility is now open for the bank to be part of the mining title, allowing the mining title to be used as a guarantee, which will also oblige the bank to develop an area that is responsible for the mining sector.Source: Ver Angola