By Antoine Lawson, Libreville.
The Directorate General of the Economy and Tax Policy (DGEPF) revealed that Gabon had produced 1.109 million tons of manganese in the first quarter of 2018, compared to 827 551 tons in 2017, a variation of 27.2% .
At the same time, exports reached 939 812 tonnes in 2018 compared to 1.12 million tonnes in 2017, corresponding to a decrease of 16.19%.
However, sales were up slightly by 4%, from 144 697 million CFA francs in the first quarter of 2017 to 150 076 million CFA francs in 2018, following the sharp rise in world manganese prices to 7, USD 4 / dmtu * on average quarterly.
In addition, the DGEPF said that “the demand for manganese ore remained globally high, despite the various judgments related to environmental imperatives in China”.
OGOoué Mining Company (COMILOG), based in Moanda (Southeast), produced more than 4 million tonnes of manganese ore and sinter in 2007, compared with 3.4 million tonnes in 2006. .
The capital of Comilog is divided between the Gabonese State (28.94%), the Eramet Group (63.71%) and the private sector (7.35%).