COUNTRY IN FOCUS • camels and cattle shipped from the Berbera Port and sent to Arab countries in the gulf . In June 2016 , the Somaliland government signed an agreement with DP World to manage the strategic Port of Berbera . The goal is to enhance productive capacity and serve as an alternative port for landlocked Ethiopia .
Exploration has been largely limited to offshore oil . The government of Somaliland granted Genel Energy a license to explore for oil in 2012 . It was indicated that the various blocks may contain in excess of 7 billion barrels of prospective combined resources . Further exploration drilling in the remaining blocks is scheduled for 2023 and 2024 .
Lignitic to sub-bituminous coal deposits occur in various locations across the country including Hed-Hed valley south of Onkhor , Guveneh hills north of Las Dureh and Daban Basin southeast of Berbera .
The main hard rock mining has been focused on quarrying industrial and construction material for local consumption . The government of Somaliland has made efforts to promote its mining sector internationally , most notably during the 2014 Mining Indaba held in South Africa . Based on historic information and some unconfirmed reports , Somaliland hosts occurrences of various minerals . Gemstones are mainly hosted in pegmatite veins , and most of the pegmatites occur between Berbera and Bawn . The gemstones encountered to date include emerald , ruby , sapphire , aquamarine , topaz , tourmaline , zircon , garnet , amethyst , spinel , opal and semi-precious diopside , citrine , epidote and jadite .
Gold mineralisation is associated with mineralised veins in porphyritic granite and placer deposits in alluvial sediments on the foothills . Most of the operations are undertaken by artisanal miners using very basic recovery methods . Gold nuggets were discovered in the Irshida Mountains in 2019 .
Large tin deposits are known at the Assilih-Dalan-Dagah Kul area eastern Sanaag region . The main ore bodies consist of numerous grouped quartz and pegmatite veins . There are also placer deposits with cassiterite grains and crystal fragments ranging in recovery sizes of between 1 to 3mm . The coastal black sand deposits contain over 70 % iron and titanium ore .
Industrial minerals including gypsum , cement materials , mica , marble , feldspar , quartz and a range of decorative stones and good quality glass-making sand have been identified . A preliminary estimation of the gypsum and anhydrite resource available on surface in the eastern part of the Daban Basin , near Berbera is in excess of 180 million tons , with purity of over 95 %. Initial test work also indicates the pegmatites host economical quantities of potassium feldspar .
Puntland – ' land of aroma ’ Puntland is bordered by Somaliland to its west , the Gulf of Aden in the north , the Guardafui Channel in the northeast , the Indian Ocean in the southeast , the central Galmudug region in the south , and Ethiopia in the southwest . The region is semi-arid , with a warm climate with several high mountain ranges .
The economic activities relate mainly to livestock , fishery , frankincense and myrrh ( from whence the region derives its name ) and petty trading . While the country is largely dependent on imports and foreign aid , the Puntland region has the lowest unemployment rate in the Horn of Africa . The government has engaged with the Chinese government to upgrade infrastructure in exchange for as-yet unknown mineral exploration rights .
The Puntland government also had official negotiations with foreign oil companies over exploration rights in the area . In 2005 Range Resources was given a majority stake in two sizable landbased mineral and hydrocarbon exploration licenses , in addition to offshore rights .
Gold was discovered in the Golis mountains near Milxo and is found as nuggets that are manually recovered from alluvial and surface deposits . There is also primary hard rock mining that takes place . The mined gold is then processed into dore bars and suggested to then be exported by various means to the UAE for refining .
Somalia Somalia ' s terrain consists mainly of plateaus , plains and highland . Hot conditions prevail year-round , along with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall . With a predominantly informal economy based on livestock , remittance / money transfer companies and telecommunications , the country is largely dependent on foreign aid and imports to meet the needs of its population .
Somalia officially produces small quantities of gemstones and salt and also has deposits of feldspar , gypsum , iron ore , copper , gold , kaolin , limestone , natural gas , quartz , silica sand , tantalum , tin and uranium . Gemstone and salt producers are mainly artisanal and small-scale in nature . Civil war forced the closure of Somalia ’ s parastatal operated cement plant and oil refinery . The Turkish government is moving to exploit oil , gas and mining prospects in Somalia . However , unlike Puntland and Somaliland , Somalia has no proven oil or gas reserves .
Somalia has a large known reserve of uranium mineralisation , hosted in sandstone and calcrete deposits . American , UAE , Italian and Brazilian mineral companies have obtained extraction rights . Industrial and construction mineral quarries are also operated on a small-scale basis here and cater to domestic requirements .
Closure Until the political situation in the Horn of Africa has been resolved and stable governments are established , the region still has a very long way to go to realise its mining potential . The region must establish new borders and countries that are recognised internationally , and progress legislation to attract any real interest in exploration and development of the mining sector . The first step would be to develop a fully verified mineral inventory of all the mineral occurrences and deposits in the region .
As it stands right now , the Horn of Africa could be the source of unknown riches , or would the history of its civil wars and the region ’ s current status mean that this opens the proverbial ‘ Pandora ’ s box ’? Only the future will tell . •
Dr Nicolaas C Steenkamp is an independent consultant , specialising in geological , geotechnical and geometallurgical projects and mining project management . He has over two decades of industry experience with global exposure . ncs . contract @ gmail . com
Dr Nicolaas C Steenkamp
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African Mining • May 2023 • 13 |