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Algeria to earmark 20 bln USD to develop mega ore deposit

Xinhua, June 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

Algeria said on Wednesday it will allocate up to 20 billion U.S. dollars to exploit a giant iron ore mine in the southernmost province of Tindouf.

"The exploitation of deposit Ghar Djebilet in Tindouf, which has a potential of 2.5 billion tons of iron ore, will kick off in a few months to support the steel industry platform in Algeria," Minister of Industry Abdeslam Bouchouareb told reporters.

The minister's remarks came on the sidelines of signing a cooperation agreement between the Algerian Geological Survey Agency (ASGA) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in the fields of geology, geophysics, hydrology, remote detection and systems of geographic data.

Algeria seeks through the project to cut the soaring iron import bill of 10 billion dollars per year, as it only produces 5 million tons a year and imports 10 million tons.

Located near the border with Mauritania, Ghar Djebilet contains recoverable reserves estimated at 1.7 billion tons, according to official figures. Endit