Canada's Orca to Invest in Sudan's Gold

A man shows off his gold to potential buyers in Sudan (Reuters)
A man shows off his gold to potential buyers in Sudan (Reuters)
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Canada's Orca to Invest in Sudan's Gold

A man shows off his gold to potential buyers in Sudan (Reuters)
A man shows off his gold to potential buyers in Sudan (Reuters)

Canada's major gold producing company, Orca, discussed the great potential for gold production in Sudan, announcing a $350 million investment for explorations.

The company intends to produce about 60 tons of gold annually in its exploration area in northeastern Sudan.

Orca Gold CEO Richard Clark discussed the company's production plans in Sudan and said the geological potential in the country is enormous, making Sudan the second or third country to produce gold in Africa, Suna reported.

According to Clark, Orca is determined to produce more than 228,000 ounces of gold annually in its concession area in the far northeast of Sudan.

In a television interview reported by Bloomberg, Clark said that Sudan's geological potential is vast. The country's political and economic conditions witnessed a steady improvement following the transitional government's removal of extremist groups.

As a result, Sudan was removed from the list of state sponsors of terrorism and approved for debt relief.

He explained that Sudan expects to write off its over $55 billion debt as part of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative (HIPC), which means its eligibility for development aid and economic aid.

According to Clark, a feasibility study for the projects in Sudan revealed the possibility of producing about 228,000 ounces of gold annually at the cost of $751 per ounce.

He explained that Sudan currently produces more than 100 tons of gold, most of which comes from traditional mining.

Ocra company will invest $350 million in mining operations as the most prominent and first specialized company to enter this market in Sudan.

According to Clark, his company operates in a mining area located within the "Nubian Gold Belt," extending from Egypt to Saudi Arabia and Eritrea.

Ocra Gold is one of the largest gold mining companies globally and is working on developing the 14th project for gold in Sudan, which is about 200 km north of Dongola.



GASTAT: Saudi Industrial Production Index Increases by 3.4% in November 2024

GASTAT publishes the IPI monthly. SPA
GASTAT publishes the IPI monthly. SPA
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GASTAT: Saudi Industrial Production Index Increases by 3.4% in November 2024

GASTAT publishes the IPI monthly. SPA
GASTAT publishes the IPI monthly. SPA

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) said Thursday that the Industrial Production Index (IPI) statistics for November 2024 showed a 3.4% increase compared to the same month of the previous year.

This increase is driven by growth in mining and quarrying, manufacturing, water supply, sewerage, and waste management and remediation activities, GASTAT said.

Furthermore, the sub-index of mining and quarrying activity increased by 1.2%, and the sub-index of manufacturing activity increased by 7.2%.

The sub-index of electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply activity recorded a decrease of 2.1%, and the sub-index of water supply, sewerage and waste management and remediation activities increased by 10.5%.

The IPI by main economic activities increased by 3.8% compared to the same month of the previous year, while the index of non-oil activities also increased by 2.4%.

GASTAT publishes the IPI monthly. It is an economic indicator that reflects the relative changes in the volume of industrial output. It is calculated based on the industrial production survey.