The Ethiopian Minerals Development S.C (EMD) announced that it had earned 341.64 million birr from the sale of minerals at local and international markets last fiscal year, up by 177 percent from the previous fiscal year's revenue.

About 98 percent of the revenue was obtained from the sale of tantalum while the balance was generated from the sale of industrial minerals and services, Girmachew Asfaw, senior planner of the company, said.

EMD owns and manages the Kenticha Tantalum mine and it produces and exports tantalum concentrate from the Kenticha mine.  

The company also produces dolomite, feldspar, kaolin and quartz  from its mines near Shakisso, 550 km south of Addis Ababa. EMD owns an 83 percent stake in Afdera Salt, a salt manufacturing share company in the Afar Regional State.  Currently, EMD is in the process of establishing a magnesium chloride factory near Afdera in the Afar Regional State.  

EMD sold 4,000 tonnes of kaolin, 440.66 tonnes of feldspar 362.35 tonnes of quartz, and 3,189.88 tonnes of dolomite last fiscal year. 

EMD is currently prospecting for gold deposit in the Benishagul Gumuz Regional State and for opal in Wadla Delanta Zone of the Amhara Regional State.  It is also prospecting for graphite, travertine and quartz minerals in the Oromia Regional State.

EMD is finalizing preparations to launch a third expansion project at the Kenticha tantalum mine with an outlay of 166.8 million birr. 

Source: The Reporter