Adamawa: PM launches Minim-Martap Bauxite project.

Officials said it will produce five million tonnes of bauxite for a period of 20 years.

Yesterday’s event at the Danielle plateau bauxite deposit in Martap, was heavily attended by several administrative, traditional, municipal and religious authorities as well as elite and the population of the area. 

Speaking during the event, the Prime Minister expressed satisfaction at the level of progress on the mining, road infrastructural, transport, energy and industrial phase of the project. 

He said the current resource of bauxite deposit, estimated at one billion tonnes, consists of rich ore containing 51% alumina and less than 2% silica, and is valued at 16 billion US dollars at current prices. 

With part of the deposit consisting of low-grade ore with a content of 44% alumina and 3% silica, he said it will be processed to obtain 213 million tonnes of alumina from 640 million tonnes of ore. 

“The annual production rate of this alumina will be four million tonnes per year, worth two billion dollars per year. This requires the establishment of a bauxite-to-alumina processing plant costing over 2 billion US dollars, for which the company will present feasibility studies by September 2026,” he stated. 

The Head of Government revealed that the mining venture will enable the country to have a complete bauxite-alumina-aluminium-aluminium products value chain on its soil, thus helping the Cameroon Aluminium Company, ALUCAM, to return to economic and financial profitability and, in the process, redefining the country's industrial landscape.

Country to derive huge benefits

The Head of government equally mentioned that, with the exploitation of high-grade bauxite, the State will derive benefits estimated at around 12% of the turnover, to which are added common law taxes after return on investment and dividends of 10% on the State's free share. 

In addition, he reassured that the State will derive enormous benefits from the mining and industrial processing of low-grade bauxite as well as benefiting from several new road, rail, energy and port infrastructures.

Impact on populations 

The Prime Minister was also crystal clear that the State will not be the lone beneficiary of the mining venture as the population in general will reap lots of gains from the project. 

On the social front, he said during the start-up phase of the project, CAMALCO has committed to building an ultra-modern hospital and school in Martap, an ultra-modern market in Minim and all other social projects spelt out in the provisions of the Mining Convention signed between the State and CAMALCO in 2024.

Regarding employment opportunities, Dr Dion Ngute reassured the population that the project, at full capacity, will generate some 5,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect jobs. 

In order for citizens to fully reap the different opportunities in mining, he said government created the School of Geology and Mining under the University of Ngaoundéré, to ease the training of engineers of the sector.

“Cameroon is once again demonstrating its ability to anticipate the need for skilled labour in the mining sector labour market. It is on the strength of the above that the Government is calling on the sons and daughters of the Adamawa Region to take a greater interest in taking full advantage of the training offered by this prestigious School, which will enable them to easily integrate into the mining sector, the lifeblood of our national economy,” he urged.

Enter CAMALCO CEO

Taking the floor, the Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of CAMALCO, Rana Pratap Singh, praised the Prime Minister for personally presiding over the ceremony of "national importance".

Going by the CAMALCO boss, the project is not merely a mining project, but a "transformative national project, rooted in one of the world's highest-quality bauxite deposits, and designed to place Cameroon firmly on the global aluminium map". 

While thanking the different stakeholders for their support and accompaniment, he said the project has completed certain milestones including mine planning, initiated procurement of wagons and locomotives, and almost completed 15km of road construction.

"These efforts set us a clear path towards the commencement of our first bauxite shipment in the history of Cameroon in the first half of 2026," CAMALCO boss assured.

Project to shape country's future 

According to the CEO, the foundation stone of the project is not just symbolic, but is the cornerstone of an industrial, economic and human adventure that will shape the future of Cameroon. 

"With an investment exceeding US$450 million, this project will generate approximately 1,000 jobs due to construction involving roads, infrastructure, camp, railway and port facilities. Once in operation, it will sustain over 700 jobs while creating thousands of indirect opportunities for local communities,” Singh stated in his speech.

Beyond mining, the CEO revealed that his company is also exploring the possibility of establishing an aluminium refinery for value addition at site in collaboration with national authorities and partners.

This aluminium refinery, he pointed out, would further strengthen the country's industrial base and create additional employment to the tune of over 1,000 directly and several thousands of indirect employments.

On behalf of CAMALCO and Canyon Resources, Singh reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to make Minim-Martap project one of the flagship achievements of Cameroon's industrial future. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3575 of Thursday September 25, 2025