Kenya plans to claim a 10 percent stake in large mining concessions under a new bill intended to give the state a greater share in profits from the sector, Mining Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said on Thursday. Successive governments have had little success in trying to develop Kenyas mining potential, with foreign exploration companies discouraged by poor infrastructure and an outdated legal framework. The government that came to power early this year has tried to help matters with a new ministry and legal changes, but has at the same time made clear it wants a bigger slice of revenues to help ease pressure on the state budget. The bill ... envisages there will be a 10 percent free carrying interest on all larger mining concessions. And this will be held by government through the national mining corporation, Balala told a mining conference in Nairobi. Free carrying interest means the government does not expect to pay for the stakes. We are not going to be destructive, Balala said. We have gone to the best practice, and we have seen 10 percent free carrying interest on the large mining companies, and also on strategic minerals. Kenya has proven deposits of titanium, gold and coal and is also estimated to hold significant deposits of copper, niobium, manganese and rare earth minerals. Via Reuters
Posted on: Fri, 18 Oct 2013 10:00:04 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015