Côte d'Ivoire mining sector turnover rose 11.5% in 2017

ABIDJAN – Côte d'Ivoire's mining sector turnover rose by 11.5% in 2017, an increase achieved mainly via exports of gold, manganese and nickel, a government spokesperson said on Wednesday.

"The mining sector announced a sales revenue of 539-billion CFA francs ($1.02-billion) in 2017, compared to 483-billion in 2016," government spokesperson Bruno Nabagne Kone said after a cabinet meeting.

Manganese output increased by a whopping 146%, reaching 510 000 tonnes in 2017. Gold output rose to 25.395 tonnes in 2017, 2.15% higher than in 2016. Nickel production, which started in 2017, was at 379,766 tonnes.

Kone added that in 2017, Côte d'Ivoire exported five shipments of diamonds worth 11 156 ct in total, earning $2.1-million.

Côte d'Ivoire, the world's top cocoa producer, is seeking to develop its long-neglected mining sector to diversify its sources of revenue.

Diamond activity resumed in April 2014, after the lifting of an international ban that had been in place because of wars and crises that divided the country between 2002 and 2011.

"Our country's mining sector has a lot of potential. In a few years Côte d'Ivoire will figure amongst the most important mineral producers on the continent," said Kone.

Australia's Perseus Mining Limited is set to open its Sissingue gold mine in the north of the country in the first quarter of 2018, Kone said.

He reaffirmed that around 200-billion CFA francs would be invested in the country's Ity gold mine to boost its performance and hit a potential of 50 tonnes. Other projects are underway in bauxite mining, nickel and iron, Kone added.