Egypt braces of international tender for mining explorations within days

The Egyptian mineral resources authority is to launch within days an international bid round for mining explorations in a number of concession areas in the country’s Eastern Desert and South Sinai.

This planned move aims to raise the mining sector’s contribution to the Egyptian GDP in the coming years.

Omer Taima – Chairman of the Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority (EMRA) – said his authority would complete within the coming few days all the procedures and security permits for the concession areas offered in the bid.

Moreover, EMRA is preparing to launch another international bid round for gold explorations within months in multiple concession areas in Red Sea, north of Eastern Desert in Safaga and Hurgada in addition to Al-Qusayr and Marsa Allam.

EMRA was established in 1896, the Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority (EMRA) is the authority entrusted with the geological mapping of the country and to explore, discover and evaluate its mineral wealth. EMRA also offers technical advice to a variety of governmental departments, mining companies, land reclamation and housing projects.

In a bid to attract foreign investment to the country’s mining sector, the Egyptian government has replaced a 60-year-old law regulating mineral resources in Egypt with a new one recently signed by the president in December 2014.

The new law will increase public revenues and improve the sector’s business environment.