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CHINIOT: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif congratulated the nation on Wednesday on discovery of major reserves of iron ore as well as copper, silver and gold near Chiniot.
Addressing a ceremony in Rajoia after receiving a briefing on the deposits, he said the discovery could help the country break the “begging bowl”.
The reserves were found by a Chinese group — Metallurgical Cooperation of China (MCC). A Punjab government official told AFP that initial estimates indicated 500 million tons of iron ore, a primary ingredient in steelmaking.
He said the Chinese company had shown interest in setting up a steel mill on the site, adding that the extracted iron had been tested in Swiss and Canadian laboratories, which found 60-65 per cent of it to be high grade.
The official said silver, copper and gold samples would also be sent for testing soon.
Punjab Mineral Company Chairman Dr Samar Mubarakmand said the MCC had explored 28 square kilometres of the designated land. Earlier results showed that the land was rich with iron, copper, silver and gold ores.
The reserves were much more than those in Saindak and Rekodiq, he claimed. He said Rekodiq reserves were spread over an area of 100 sq-km and had just 0.6pc copper while the Chiniot reserves were spread over 2,000 sq-km and had more than 1pc copper. “It will be one of the precious reserves of copper among global reserves.”
Addressing the ceremony, Dr Mubarakmand said a final report would be ready by the end of the year, after which investment would be invited to explore and utilise the reserves.
The prime minister said the country was facing scarcity of resources. “Allah has bestowed us with mineral resources which could end poverty.”
He said his government was working on importing gas from Iran and Turkmenistan to meet energy needs. LNG import is also at an advanced stage and will be marketed soon.
He said that coal reserves in Thar were also being explored so that new coal-fired power houses could be built and the existing plants converted into coal-based ones.
MCC President Mr Yoo said the ores of copper, gold, silver and iron found in Chiniot were one of the biggest reserves in the world. He also offered to install a steel mill with a capacity of processing three million tons.
Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said the reserves area would be divided into units and each one would be offered to local and foreign investors.
APP adds: Prime Minister Sharif was informed that with the assistance of MCC, a feasibility study had been completed in about nine months instead of the estimated 18 months.
The prime minister evinced keen interest and asked a number of questions about the type and quality of deposits. He said he had personally come here to share the joy of the moment and to share it with the nation.
He was informed that studies were being currently conducted in 28 sq-km of the area and initial findings showed that there was high probability of presence of good quality deposits in around 2000 sq-km, particularly in south and south-eastern parts of Chiniot city.
He was shown through graphs and 3D models details of the deposits.
He lauded the expertise and hard work of Pakistani metallurgical experts and scientists. He thanked German consultant firm GEOS for supervising the work.
Published in Dawn February 12th , 2015
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