Mining License revocation,a Chinese Conspiracy to control the niobium market-Cortec

Last Updated 13 years ago by Kenya Engineer

 By Daisy Gakuu

The Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Hon. Najib Balala on Monday last week suspended all operations ranging from Prospecting, Exploration and Mining with the intention to pave way for a clearer and transparent way of licensing in the sector. Cortec Mining Kenya Limited is amid the 31 firms affected following the revoking of all mining licenses issued from 14th January to 15th May 2013.  The suspension preceded appointment of a task force with Mr. Mohammed Nyaoga as the Chair, to assess the validity of licenses issued between January 2003 and August 2013, draft recommendations and provide a report to the cabinet secretary for him to take necessary action within 60 days.

Cortec claims that the government has the firm as its main target given it’s the only one in operation. “He is targeting Cortec. He is trying to exert pressure because there are many interested parties in our resource. The Chinese are interested. They want to control the niobium market,” said Jacob Juma, a director of Cortec Mining Limited and a 30 per cent owner.

This he mentioned while the Cabinet Secretary convened with the mining delegation from China under the umbrella of Blue Ocean Investment Fund.

Cortec which was awarded a 21-year special mining license in March 7 this year is not taking the revocation lightly. “The company has not received any formal notice of the cancellation of its mining license and will strongly oppose the revocation of its legally acquired rights to mine… it is the company’s intention to vigorously challenge any abuse of our license or the company in the courts,” said the company’s Managing Director, David Anderson.

The revocation comes shortly after National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) approved of its Environmental Impact Assessment studies for mining and establishment of a mineral processing plant in Mombasa. The consent gave the Mining firm a go-ahead to mine niobium and rare earth metals.  

Niobium is a rare mineral used to strengthen steel used in manufacturing cars, ships, oil and gas pipelines as well as aircraft engines, among others. It is used to produce high strength low alloy (HSLA) as an additive to ordinary steel, increasing its strength while reducing its weight.

Rare earth metals are used in circuits found in electronics among other appliances. China currently dominates production of rare earth metals, accounting for more than 90 percent of the world’s production though the minerals are distributed across the world.