- Mining in Benin
The
mineral industry, which is limited to the production ofcement ,clay ,gold ,sand , andgravel , does not play a significant role in theBenin 's economy.Omayra Bermúdez-Lugo. [http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/country/2006/myb3-2006-bn-uv-tp.pdf "The Mineral Industry of Benin, Burkina Faso, and Sao Tome e Principe"] . "2006Minerals Yearbook ".U.S. Geological Survey (October 2007). "This article incorporates text from this U.S. government source, which is in thepublic domain .]Cement was produced by Ciments du Benin S.A., Société des Ciments d’Onigbolo, and Société des Ciments du Benin. These companies had a combined cement production capacity of 1.43 million metric tons per year (Mt/yr). Gold was produced by
artisanal miners from gold veins near the villages ofKwatena andTchantangou , in theAtakora Mountains in northwestern Benin, and from alluvial sediments along thePerma River and its tributaries.Benin ceased
petroleum production from itsSeme oilfield in 1998; however, at least one company, Kosmos Energy LLC of the United States, explored for petroleum in 2006. Kosmos, through its subsidiary Kosmos Energy Benin HC, had a 40% working interest in an exploration license for Block 4, which is located about 30 kilometers (km) offshore Benin. Kosmo’s venture partners were Kerr-McGee Benin Consortium S.A. (an affiliate of Kerr-McGee Corporation of the United States) (40%) and Petronas Carigali Overseas Sdn Bhd of Malaysia (20%). In 2006, the partners conducted a 1,472-square-kilometer (km2) three-dimensional (3D)seismic survey of the Block’s most prospective areas and were in the process of interpreting and reprocessing existing 3D seismic data.References
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