Egypt is widely believed to have been one of the first large-scale gold mining locations in the world and is still considered to be the home of an estimated 6.7Moz of the precious metal. Yet there is only one commercial mine currently in operation in the Middle-Eastern nation.
Much of the lack of recent gold development has been blamed on the government and several onerous regulations. However, recent changes from what is now looming as a pro-mining government, and a number of drilling successes, are leading to a new gold rush to the ancient territory.
In early 2020, the Egyptian parliament approved amendments to the country’s Mineral Resources Law, which removed the profit-sharing rule (whereby the government takes approximately 50% of the profits of the foreign companies working on Egyptian soil) that had been unpopular among international investors.
Those moves saw a dramatic turnaround in international interest in Egypt’s gold riches.
In April 2021, the Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority signed 15 contracts with seven English, Canadian, and Egyptian companies to search for gold in 30 areas, with forecast investments estimated at around US$42.2M.
Earlier this year, eight exploration blocks were awarded to four companies in the Egyptian Eastern Desert through the second international bid round for gold exploration and its associated minerals. The successful applicants were:
- England’s Akh Gold Limited: two blocks
- London-based Marine Logistics Gold Mining Ltd: two blocks
- Canada’s Lotus Gold Corporation: three blocks
- Egypt’s Ankh Resources LLC: one block
The Egyptian government is now confident that these companies will now provide up to US$1B in new investment in gold exploration and help revitalize the country’s mining sector and economy.
Announced in mid-2020, Iqat is estimated by the Egyptian government to contain 1Moz of gold
That is certainly the belief of the nation’s minister of petroleum and mineral resources, Tarek El Molla who, in early July, told the “Egypt Mining Forum 2022” that the current developments within the mining sector provide promising investment opportunities for the country. He then invited the international and local mining investors to take up these opportunities.
The minister particularly highlighted the investment potential available near the recent Iqat region gold discovery in the Egyptian Eastern Desert and the potential to take advantage of the new Golden Triangle development area.
Announced in mid-2020, Iqat is estimated by the Egyptian government to contain 1Moz of gold. Located in the mineral-rich Eastern Desert, Iqat was discovered on a mining concession run by state-owned Shalateen Mining Company and is now being fast-tracked for development.
GTEZ
The government-backed Golden Triangle Economic Zone (GTEZ) covers Safaga, Quseer, Qena, and Qift to include several activities, including mineral extraction and industrial facilities. It is in the heart of the mineral resources belt adjacent to the Red Sea coast.
Aton discovery
Another discovery creating plenty of excitement in Egypt was recently made by Aton Resources Inc. (TSXV: AAN) at West Garida prospect, located in the company’s 100% owned Abu Marawat Concession in the Eastern Desert region.
The company confirmed that all five percussion RC holes recently drilled at the West Garida prospect had intersected mineralization. The drilling was testing the down dip extensions of mineralized quartz veins mapped at surface, and intersected mineralization associated with the targeted narrow quartz veins.
Highlight intersects included Hole WGP-003 which returned 41.7g/t Au, 263g/t Ag, and 2.08% Pb over a 1.0m interval from 17m depth; and Hole WGP-005, which assayed 1.54g/t Au over a 5m interval from 65m depth.
“We are very excited to be able to announce the discovery of high-grade quartz vein associated mineralization from this new drilling at West Garida,” said Tonno Vahk, Interim CEO.
“West Garida is an area that has interested us since we first mapped it in 2017, has been on our radar since then, and we are delighted with the results from this initial short RC programme. Its proximity to the Hamama West deposit makes it particularly interesting, in terms of its potential ease of development, and West Garida again confirms the outstanding exploration potential of the entire Abu Marawat Concession.”
The West Garida prospect was discovered, mapped, and sampled by Aton geologists in 2017, with individual surface channel samples returning grades including 99.6g/t and 45.6g/t Au. Visible gold was identified in several samples associated with the quartz vein hosted mineralization.
Centamin ready to celebrate fifth millionth ounce
UK-headquartered Centamin Group (LSE: CEY | TSX: CEE) has long heralded Egypt’s golden potential and this year it will celebrate the fifth millionth ounce of gold produced at its world-class Sukari operation since it began production 13 years ago.
Centamin was built on the exploration success of its Egyptian founders with the Sukari discovery in the 1990s. The subsequent development of the Sukari Gold Mine is a story of tenacity in the modernization of an ancient gold mining jurisdiction, which remains one of the few under-explored gold belts – the Arabian Nubian Shield.
Today, Sukari is Egypt’s first large-scale modern mine; served by smooth tarmac roads, off-grid power, soon to be solar and a 25km water pipeline fed by the Red Sea, the company says.
Centamin is confident Sukari has at least 12 years of production ahead and 9.8Moz in gold resources. The company recently announced significant exploration success that it is confident will continue to build on its Egyptian presence.
Centamin’s ongoing exploration initiatives across its prospective portfolio in Egypt has successfully identified the potential for satellite open pit ore sources within the Sukari concession and extensions of the Sukari underground orebody, inclusive of high-grade “bonanza” zones.
“The team at Sukari continues to deliver excellent results which demonstrate the quality of our portfolio – positive drill results have demonstrated the upside potential in the orebody that can support both life of mine extensions and an increase in underground production,” CEO, Martin Hogan, said.
“Across the broader concession we identified shallow satellite surface targets, potentially adding growth and operational flexibility to our mine plan and completed the first airborne geophysical survey in Egypt – a milestone for Centamin and Egypt’s hard rock sector.
“We also made excellent progress across our organic pipeline of projects that offer growth and diversification. The Pre-feasibility Study at Doropo progressed well with drilling focused on both converting existing Inferred Resources to Indicated Resources and testing newly identified growth targets.
“During Q2, field work commenced in our highly prospective Eastern Desert exploration licences. With over 20 years of operating history in Egypt, Centamin is uniquely positioned to deliver the significant potential of the licences in the most cost-effective way.”
Across Egypt, Centamin holds 3,000km2 of new exploration licences.
