Friday August 18, 2023, in the large room of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, in Brazzaville, the Congolese government signed an Agreement for the mining of potash ore from the Kanga deposit, with the companies KANGA POTASH and its subsidiary Congolese law SEPK S.A.

The Congolese side was represented by four ministers. In this case, Pierre Oba, Minister of State, Minister of Mining Industries and Geology; Jean-Baptiste Ondaye, Minister of Economy and Finance; Ludovic Ngasté, Minister of Budget, Public Accounts and Public Portfolio; and Honoré Sayi, Minister of Transport, Civil Aviation and Merchant Marine. The two signatory companies were represented by Stéphane A. Rigny and Achim Strauss, respectively Chairman of the Board of Directors (PCA) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company KANGA POTASH

According to technical data provided by the Director General of Mines, Urbain Fiacre Opo, the exploited deposit, called Kanga (located in the Loango district, Kouilou Department) has a reserve of 130 million 800,000 tonnes. Its production capacity is 600,000 tonnes per year. The duration of the Mine Operating Agreement is 25 years, renewable. The planned investment, which includes infrastructure, is estimated at 555 million US dollars (or 333,945 billion 253 million 245,000 CFA francs).

For his part, the Minister of State, Minister of Mining Industries and Geology, Pierre Oba, indicated that “this convention is the culmination of a 7-year process of negotiations begun in 2016 between the Congolese Administration ( bringing together executives from the 6 ministries) and operating partners”. He added that this mining is part of the economic diversification of the Republic of Congo which should no longer rely only on oil. Because, here, it is a question of exploiting potash from which several products are manufactured, including potash salts and fertilizers for fertilizing agricultural land. And, at present, when the world is facing a food crisis, famine, mainly due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine (two major wheat producing and exporting countries in the world), this convention is welcome in the eyes of Minister of State Pierre Oba.

The latter took the opportunity to welcome the presence, alongside him, of his Government colleagues mentioned above, by virtue of their responsibilities and their involvement in the expected success of this project. For example, in the field of Transport, because it will be necessary to transport minerals from production sites to industries.

For his part, Stéphane A. Rigny, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company KANGA POTASH, added in these terms: “The fertilizer industry is a structuring sector. It will produce its effects in food security, not only for Congo-Brazzaville, but also for the rest of Africa and the world. Indeed, Congo-Brazzaville is an exceptional global player in the fertilizer industry, because its soils are full, at the same time and in the same places, of potash, phosphates and natural gases! The Kanga deposit potash salt mining project will offer numerous direct and indirect jobs, both in its infrastructure construction phase and in its production phase!”

A reminder of the genesis process of the 7 years of negotiations since 2016, which resulted in the identification of the Kanga deposit

The company Newco Mining S.A, a company incorporated under Congolese law (registered in Pointe-Noire, under the number RCCM: CG / PNR/08 B 533) and whose head office is located within the Concession ex-OCER, Duplex C2, avenue de l'Emeraude, in the city center, had expressed its desire to contribute to the development of the Congolese mining sector, through the exploration and exploitation of potash salts.

She had obtained two mining titles from the Congolese state. First, a research permit referenced no. 2016-265 of September 26, 2016, renewed once in 2022. The investment work for this research permit, estimated at 48 million US dollars, had favored the highlighting of a technically exploitable and economically profitable deposit called “Kanga”. Then, an operating permit referenced no. 22022-465 of August 2, 2022.

It is therefore this operating permit which justified, Friday August 18, 2023, the signing of the Convention for the mining of potash salts from the Kanga deposit.

The Communication Unit of the Ministry of Economy and Finance