In Tindouf, a partnership agreement was signed between the National Iron and Steel Company (FERAL) and the Chinese consortium “CMH” related to the exploitation of iron ores in the Ghar Jbeilat-Gharb mine and the valuation of its production by establishing a factory for the production of steel tiles in Bechar.
This agreement was signed by the President and Director General of the National Iron and Steel Company (FERAL), Ahmed Bin Abbas, and the President of the Chinese Consortium “CMH”, Zhou Zhibing, in the presence of the President and Director General of the Algerian Mines Complex, Mohamed Sakhr Harami, and the Director General of Mines at the Ministry Energy and mines, Najibeh Bournan, and the Wali of Tindouf, Mohamed Mokhbi.
According to the clarifications that were presented during the signing ceremony, this agreement seeks to work on extracting 2 million tons of iron ore / year, in the horizons of 2026 from the Ghar Jbeilat-West mine, before reaching an annual extraction capacity of 50 million tons of iron ore in the horizons of 2040. .
It is expected that the implementation of this integrated mining and mineral development project will contribute significantly to reducing carbon emissions and achieving sustainable development globally in the iron and steel industry, in addition to providing important revenues for Algeria.
On the other hand, the explanations presented on the occasion stated that the Chinese Technical Review Committee for Metallurgical Industry and Transformation confirmed that the smelting and metal transformation process in iron ore with a high concentration of phosphorus has become possible.
Mr. Harami said, on the occasion, that this project is “a stage of putting into effect the strategy adopted by the Ministry of Energy and Mines to embody the roadmap approved by the government to value mining resources and construct major projects.”
“The project to value the Ghar Djebeilat mine will allow, in its early stages, to provide raw materials for the entire steel industry in Algeria, which needs large quantities,” Maastrilla said.
In this context, Mr. Harami mentioned that Algeria imported $1.2 billion worth of ferrous raw materials last year, highlighting that, upon completion of current investments in the field of steel industry in the year 2025, an amount of $2 billion will be saved.
On a question related to the handle that will be employed in this project, Mr. Harami said that with regard to the extraction of raw materials, the handle is mostly Algerian by virtue of the skills acquired by the national company “Feral” in this field.
As for the transfer, according to him, the matter requires the presence of a Chinese workforce, with the gradual formation of Algerians in these technical fields.
In turn, the governor of Tindouf confirmed that the Ghar Jbeilat mine project, as well as the railway project that will link the states of Tindouf and Bechar, will create great economic movement and development in the region, in addition to a large number of jobs.
