Vale, the Brazilian mining company and the concession-holder on coal mining in Moatize, Mozambique, has said that it invested $250M to reactivate mining in Mozambique's Tete province this year.
The company said that when it was granted the concession through a government tender in 2004, it paid over $123M for the license, which will last 25 years. This year it has invested over $130M. The Moatize mine, which was badly damaged during Mozambique's civil war in the 1970s and 1980s, is believed to hold about 2.4 mt of coal reserves, making it one of the largest untapped deposits in the southern hemisphere.
The Brazilian-led consortium expects to begin production in 2010, with estimated annual output of about 12 mtpa.
Some of the production will fuel a 2,000 MW thermal power station in Mozambique, with the rest mostly destined for export. The project includes a 900 km railway linked to a deep-water port.
The Moatize project could put Mozambique in competition with neighbouring South Africa in the coal export business, say market observers....
