China asked to help in African mining

The exploration rights owner of newly found world-class diamond, rare earth and strategic minerals deposits in the Southwestern African nation of Namibia is seeking support from China and partnership with Chinese companies for cooperative development of the resources.

Malaysian businessman Subramaniam Ragubathi, owner of Nambib Resources Pty Ltd, a diamond and minerals exploration company registered in Namibia, discovered the huge diamond and mineral resources.

Subramaniam Ragubathi, owner of Nambib Resources Pty Ltd, said he believes a partnership with China for the exploration of resources on the leased areas will be mutually beneficial.Kuang Linhua / China Daily

Considering China's strong presence in Africa and its expertise in mining and refining of rare-earth metals, Ragubathi said he believes a partnership with China for the exploration of resources on the leased areas will be mutually beneficial.

The leases along the Skeleton Coast cover about 2,300 square kilometers.

The area is estimated to have approximately 700 to 800 million metric tons of rare-earth ore, which can supply the global demand of 130,000 tons a year for at least 30 years, according to Nambib Resources.

In one of the four leases, Toscanini, the company has identified 57 million carats of diamonds with a government-appraised value of more than $20 billion.

The company also owns the mining license of the Toscanini mine.

He told China Daily his company is in talks with several Chinese State-owned companies about cooperation but declined to release their names.

Sources from two large State-owned resources companies, Baotou Steel Rare-earth Hi-tech Co, the largest rare-earth producer in the country, and China Minmetals Corp, a major metals and mineral trader, said they are unaware of any cooperation so far.

Zhang Zhong, general manager of Baotou Steel Rare-earth, said it would be good for the company to invest in African rare-earth mines so long as the resources are of high quality.