Mozambique: Significant increase in mineral production in 2021

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Mozambique: Significant increase in mineral production in 2021

2:04 CAT | 10 May 2023

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Notícias]

Mozambique’s production of minerals registered significant growth from 2020 to 2021, according to data from the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy (MIREME) recently published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).

The improvement in technical conditions, as well as the resumption of activity following the Covid-19 pandemic, are identified as the main causative factors in this scenario.

Of the various minerals, the highlight goes to the growth of the metallic minerals group. Gold production increased by 56.7% from 488 kg in 2020 to 764 kg in 2021.

In the same group, a 49.6% jump in rutile production also stands out, having increased from 5,9000 tons in 2020 to 8,900 tons in 2021.

Also in the metallic minerals group comes a 75.6% growth in the production of heavy sands, from 7,000 tons in 2020 to 12,800 tons in 2021.

Among non-metallic minerals, beryl grew 314.6%, with quantities increasing from 80 tons in 2020 to 330 tons in 2021.

Graphite grew 324.7%, from 18,000 tons in 2020 to 77,000 tons in 2021.

Quartz grew even more, up 628.1% from 163,000 kg in 2020 to just over one million kg in 2021.

The non-metallic minerals category also covers precious and semi-precious stones such as rubies and tourmalines.

Tourmalines grew by 233.8% with quantities increasing from 110 kg in 2020 to 2,680 kg in 2021.

Ruby production grew 213.5%, from 1,500 carats in 2020 to 5,000 carats in 2021.

Among fuel minerals, the production of coking coal grew by 22.7% and that of thermal coal by 58.6%. Between 2020 and 2021, coking coal quantities increased from 4,600 tons to 5,700 tons and thermal coal production from 3,300 tons to 5,300 tons.

“The increase in production was due to the improvement of technical production capacities, resumption of operations by mining companies previously negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and greater control of artisanal mining activities, as well as screening actions by the Kimberley Process Management Unit,” the MIREME’s Statistical Report on the Extractive Industry 2020-2021 reads.

As regards exports, the MIREME report states that the groups of non-metallic minerals and fuel minerals recorded the highest volume of exported products.

The report however reveals a decrease in sales on the domestic market of thermal coal (53.6%), limestone (60%), building stone (78.5%) and clay (96.1%), but an increase of 293.5% of diatomite and sand for construction by 9.5%.

With regard to hydrocarbons, the production of natural gas increased by 1.2%, from 185.8 million gigajoules in 2020 to 188 million gigajoules in 2021 .The MIREME docume nt reports a drop of 5.3% in the production of condensed gas, from 281,000 barrels in 2020 to 266,000 barrels in 2021. Natural gas exports decreased by 0.4% and condensed gas by 3.7%; while sales in the domestic market grew by 1.4% between 2020 and 2021.

Source: Carta de Moçambique