Announcement of Morocco to Increase Copper Production Fourfold on February 28, 1980

International Finance Corporation • 1818 H Street. NW Washington.DC 2D433. U.S.A. 202-477-i 234 IFC Press Release No. 80/19 Thursday, February 28, 1980 Morocco to Increase Copper Production Fourfold Societe Miniere du Bou-Gaffer "SOMIFER", a Moroccan mining company, with additional financial support from Moroccan and Arab investors and the Interna- tional Finance Corporation is undertaking a major expansion to develop important copper ore reserves in Bleida, a relatively less developed region in the southern part of the country. The $65 million project will produce about 50,000 metric tons of copper con- centrates a year for export~ four times the country's current output of about 12,500 tons. The project includes opening a new copper mine with estimated • reserves of about 1.8 million metric tons of greater than 7 percent copper bear- ing ore, constructing an on-site flotation plant capable of processing about a quarter of a million tons of ore annually, and providing complete living facili- ties for the 350 employees and their families. With an infusion of new capital stock, Bureau de Recherches et de Partici- pations Miniere (BRPM), a Moroccan Government agency specializing in mining and energy development, will haye invested approximately $8.8 million of equity funds into the project. A group headed by Omnium Nord Africain (ONA), .a private Moroccan holding company, invested another $8 .. 8 million. IFC, the World Bank affiliate that supports private enterprise projects in developing countries, and the Arab Mining Company, owned by several Arab states and Arab financing insti- tutions, will have each provided $2.3 million in equity funds. Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co., Ltd. of Japan, has provided $834,000 in equity. In addition, the Banque Nationale pour le Developpement Economique (BNDE), the Moroccan development bank, is expected to provide $18.2 million in loans. Other loan financing is being provided by IFC, about $13 million; Compagnie de Tiffnout Tiranimine and ~RPM, $2.5 mtllion; and Moroccan banks, $5.1 million. • The balance of needed financing will be cash generation •  - 2 - The project, slat~d to begin operations in late 1981, supports the • Moroccan Government~s policies of developing the country's mineral wealth and its efforts to bring new and profitable activities into the less developed regions of the country. It is expected that the project will generate an estimated $20 million annually in foreign exchange. • [Any inquiries relating to IFC's participation in this project should be directed to the IFC Information Office, 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, Telephone (202) 676-0394.] •