Uganda has unveiled its first large-scale gold mine, a $250 million Chinese-owned project that will also refine the bullion to 99.9% purity.
Last year, Uganda raised $3.4 billion from gold exports, according to central bank data, representing about 37% of the country’s total export revenue. The figure includes the re-export of gold brought into the country, with nearly all its domestic production from small-scale artisanal miners.
“To wake up in the minerals sector, we must have full value addition for all minerals like gold, lithium, tin among others,” Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said in a statement issued late on Saturday.
Chinese Gold Mining Project
The Wagagai Gold Mining Project, is owned by Wagagai Mining (U) Limited and covers just over nine square kilometres in Busia district, was inaugurated by Museveni on Saturday.
The plant, which has started operations, is expected to process 5,000 tons of gold ore per day and produce about 1.2 metric tons of refined gold a year, according to the statement.
Uganda plans to use the revenue generated by exporting gold to develop assets such as power stations and the country’s railway especially the $3.16 billion) standard gauge railway currently being constructed to reduce the cost of transporting its exports and imports via neighbouring Kenya.
