US mining firm targets Ksh24.5m gold factory in Kenya

Spirit Mining Kenya Ltd, a local subsidiary of US-based mineral exploration and development company Spirit Mining LLC, is seeking to establish a gold mining plant at Ndhiwa in Homa Bay.

The project will cost an estimated Ksh24,538,429.90, including expenses for CIP leaching plant, jaw crusher, fine ore hopper, milling, concentration, classification, elusion, tailings storage facility, labour, and other contingencies.

The company has submitted an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) report to the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) for approval before the project kicks off.

The exact location of the proposed plant is Kabuoch South Ward, Koguta Sub-Location, Pala Location, Ndhiwa Sub-County, Homabay County, Kenya. The area has a history of small-scale mining activities and is known for its rich mineral deposits.

According to the ESIA report, exploration work done by Spirit Mining in the project area failed to outline any medium scale mineralization, but succeeded in identifying a number of small high-grade quartz veins, which are sufficient to justify a viable small-scale mining project.

The entire prospecting license area in Homabay county, which the proposed project fall has been given a special name Atieli.

The area was previously held by Pinsapo Kenya Ltd which carried out exploration works and defined the resource Spirit Mining intends to mine (Special License 209). Spirit Mining made a mining license application No/4583 over an area of approximately 12 square kilometers.

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According to the company, underground mining at the project site will require specialized equipment and infrastructure, including shaft head gear, electric winch, compressor, drilling gear, water pumps, and ventilation system. The explosives magazine, surrounded by earth mounds and a perimeter fence, will be guarded 24/7, it said.

There two main methods of extraction ore from the ground; Surface mining/ Open pit mining which is suitable for shallow lying deposits and Underground mining which is most suited for steeply dipping and narrow deposits. During the mining process, the ore will be loosened using explosives in a process known as drilling and blasting and the loosened ore will be transported to the processing site.

Homa Bay is one of the remote regions of western Kenya near Lake Victoria that are rich in gold ore. Most of the country’s artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) activities are carried out in these rural areas, where mining and subsistence agriculture are the major ways of earning a living.

Kenya is a minor exporter of gold. In 2022, the country exported an estimated $191 million (Ksh24.5 billion) in gold. The main destinations of Kenya exports on Gold were Rwanda, United Arab Emirates (UAE), South Africa, Switzerland and South Korea.

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