JOHANNESBURG (Commodity Online): The diminishing nature of some land-based mineral resources has increased the importance of marine mining and has reignited the interest of mining houses in this new frontier.

Although Southern Africa has a relatively long history of marine mining, the focus was mostly on land-based natural resources during the commodity boom as the emphasis was placed on large volumes when weighed against the cost of mining.

However, the onset of the global economic crisis has significantly affected the mining industry with many mines and smelters being shut down during the worst part of the crisis. During this time, with limited cash burn, increasing volume was the name of the game.

This started to shift the focus of mining houses towards the seas, which offer a plethora of readily available resources.

According to miningweekly.com, the recently signed joint venture (JV) agreement between gold-mining major AngloGold Ashanti and diamond giant De Beers has indicated that companies are prepared to look past the high start-up costs associated with this type of mining.

The joint venture between De Beers and AngloGold Ashanti Ltd expects to start its first underwater drilling for gold in the second quarter of next year.

De Beers Marine provides the technical support and exploration vessels for the world’s biggest diamond producer, which mines offshore in South Africa but mainly in Namibia.

Now, the company is focused on New Zealand as the first step of the new venture. De Beers, the world’s top diamond producer, is 45% owned by global miner Anglo American Plc.

The immediate targets after New Zealand would be South America, followed by Africa and then North America.

Geologists from the joint venture have been prospecting all continents except Asia and Europe.

The JV will initially focus on exploration, but, if successful, will ultimately mine marine deposits off the continental shelf. Further, the focus of the venture will not be on diamonds, unless these occur along with other target minerals and metals.

AngloGold Ashanti and De Beers are to establish a jointly owned technical services company, Techco, which they intend to develop into a fully functional marine exploration and mining services company.

Techco and De Beers Marine, a wholly owned subsidiary of De Beers, will provide the skills, expertise, technology and facilities related to marine exploration on the continental shelf.

AngloGold Ashanti will solely fund the JV and Techco until the completion of an initial exploration period of at least three consecutive sampling seasons to December 31, 2012, or until the gold-miner has funded a total amount of $40-million.

Upon the conclusion of this period, AngloGold Ashanti will have earned in an equivalent interest to De Beers’ in all the projects pursued under the agreement. Following the initial exploration period, the two companies will be equal partners in the JV.

Marine-focused engineering company Marine & Mineral Projects MD Rodney Norman reports that the JV is a major investment boost to the industry.

“The JV is significant as it will identify placer deposits in the oceans of the world, which will be explored and their potential understood. The JV heralds the start of an exciting future for the underwater and undersea mining industry. In addition, it illustrates that major mining houses are seeing underwater and under- sea mining as the future of new deposits, discoveries and sources of revenue,” says Norman. He adds that the JV can take the lead not only in Africa but worldwide.
(SOURCE: miningweekly.com)

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