Tibet Hima led consortium wins bid to revive Uganda's Kilembe copper mines

KAMPALA (Scrap Monster) : A Chinese consortium led by Tibet Hima has emerged the winners of the bid for revival of the abandoned Kilembe copper mines in Uganda.

The statement released by the Ugandan Ministry of Finance and Privatization Unit declared that the consortium led by Tibet Hima pushed Chinese firm Gingko to the second spot. The main highlight of the deal was the commitment made by the consortium to make an initial investment of $135 million towards rehabilitation of the mine. The consortium also would upgrade the Mobuku Power plant from 5 mw to 12 mw. Uganda will receive signature fees of $4.3 million as well as concession fees of $1.005 million.

A total of 5 companies from China, Zambia and Australia had expressed interest in the mine, from which the Tibet Hima led consortium was selected as the best bidder. The Tibet Hima led consortium is composed of Shanghai Baosteel Group, Chinalco Luoyang Copper Company, Yunnan Copper Company, Dongfang Electric Corporation, Tebian Electric Apparatus, Zijin Mining Group and Zongshen Industry Group.

The Kilembe copper mines –once biggest contributor to the country’s GDP- was abandoned in early 1980s following the political turmoil in Congo and sharp fall in copper prices. After being non-operational for more than 30 years now, most of the machinery in the mines are reported to be non-functional. The rail network linking the Kasese mine with the smelting plant in Jinja also needs to be rebuilt. The recent floods have further damaged the mines.

The Kilembe mine is estimated to have around 4 million tonnes of ore in it.