2011 Minerals Yearbook MADAGASCAR U.S. Department of the Interior September 2013 U.S. Geological Survey THE MINERAL INDUSTRY OF MADAGASCAR By Thomas R. Yager In 2011, Madagascar played a significant role in the world’s 0.83% nickel and 0.07% cobalt. In November 2011, reserves at production of ilmenite, rutile, and zirconium. The country’s Ambatovy were estimated to be about 170 million metric tons share of world mine production of ilmenite amounted to (Mt) at grades of 0.94% nickel and 0.082% cobalt. The life of about 5%, and rutile and zirconium, about 1% each. Other the mine was estimated to be 29 years (Mining Journal, 2011; domestically significant minerals produced included chromite, Sherritt International Corp., 2012, p. 17). gemstones, and ornamental stones. Madagascar was not a Starting in mid-2011, lateritic slurry from the globally significant consumer of minerals in 2011 (Gambogi, Ambatovy ore-processing plant was to be processed at a 2012a, b). pressure-acid-leaching plant at Toamasina. The plant was expected to produce a sulfide product that contained 55.2% Minerals in the National Economy nickel and 4.2% cobalt. The sulfide product would be processed at a refinery with a capacity of 60,000 metric tons per year (t/yr) Based on provisional data for 2011, the manufacturing sector of refined nickel and 5,600 t/yr of cobalt; the mine was expected accounted for 11% of the gross domestic product, and the to reach full capacity in 2013. In June 2011, Sherritt revised its mining and construction materials sectors combined, 1.6%. estimate of the capital costs at Ambatovy to $5.5 billion and In 2010 (the latest year for which data were available), the delayed the opening of the leaching plant and refinery to the first mining sector grew by an estimated 228%. Employment in quarter of 2012 (Mining Journal, 2005, 2011). gemstone mining at Ilakaka and Sakaraha was estimated to be Copper and Platinum-Group Metals.—Sunridge Gold about 50,000 workers (Pardieu, 2010; Ministry of the Economy, Corp. of Canada drilled at its Besakoa copper-gold-zinc property Commerce, and Industry, 2011, p. xiv, xvi). in 2011. Malagasy Minerals Ltd. (MML) of Australia conducted Production stream sampling at the Ampanihy nickel-copper property and drilling at the Vohibory copper-silver property in 2011. The In 2011, the production of cobalt increased by an estimated company planned further soil sampling at Ampanihy in the first 203%; nickel, by an estimated 195%; zircon, by an quarter of 2012 (Malagasy Minerals Ltd., 2012). estimated 77%; mica and rutile, by 65% each; ilmenite, by an Titanium and Zirconium.—QIT Madagascar Minerals estimated 64%; and labradorite and salt, by an estimated 13% SA (QMM) [QIT Fer et Titane of Canada (a subsidiary of Rio each. Chromite production decreased by 50% in 2011, and Tinto plc), 80%, and the Government of Madagascar, 20%] quartz, by 47%. Data on mineral production are in table 1. mined ilmenite, rutile, and zircon at Mandena in southeastern Madagascar. In 2011, QMM planned to increase its ilmenite Structure of the Mineral Industry production to 473,000 t from 287,000 t in 2010. The company also planned to increase its output of zirsill, which is composed Most of Madagascar’s mining and mineral processing of quartz, sillimanite, and zircon, to 22,000 t in 2011 from operations were privately owned, including the gemstone, 12,600 t in 2010. By 2013, QMM planned to reach its full graphite, mineral sands, nickel, and salt mines and the cement capacity of 750,000 t/yr of ilmenite and 40,000 t/yr of zirsill. plants. Artisanal miners produced gemstones and gold. The ilmenite, which was exported to Canada for smelting, had a State-owned Kraomita Malagasy SA (KRAOMA) was the grade of 60% titanium dioxide (Clarke, 2010; Anglo-Malagasy country’s only chromite producer. Table 2 lists major mineral Society Newsletter, 2011). industry facilities in Madagascar. In 2011, World Titanium Resources Ltd. (WTR) purchased Commodity Review the undeveloped Ranobe mineral sands deposit, which had resources of 710 Mt that contained about 30 Mt of ilmenite, Metals 2.5 Mt of zircon, and 0.85 Mt of rutile. Depending on the results of its feasibility study on a new mine at Ranobe, WTR planned Bauxite and Alumina and Gold.—Aziana Ltd. explored for to mine 400,000 t/yr of ilmenite and 43,000 t/yr of rutile and bauxite at Manantenina and for gold at Alakamisy, Anosivolo, zircon concentrate. Production was expected to start in 2014. Antakasina, Antandrokazo, Grigri, and Marovato in 2011. The The life of the mine was estimated to be at least 20 years company planned a drilling program at Alakamisy in 2012 (Mentiplay, 2012). (Aziana Ltd., 2011). Vanadium.—In 2011, Energizer Resources Inc. of Canada Cobalt and Nickel.—In July 2010, a joint venture of Sherritt was engaged in a prefeasibility study at its Green Giant property International Corp. of Canada (40%), Sumitomo Corp. of Japan in southwestern Madagascar. Resources at the Green Giant (27.5%), Korea Resources Corp. of the Republic of Korea property were estimated to be 59.2 Mt at a grade of 0.682% (27.5%), and SNC-Lavalin Inc. of Canada (5%) started mining vanadium pentoxide (V2O5). Vanadium mineralization was nickel-cobalt laterite deposits at Ambatovy. By the end of 2011, hosted in graphite-rich sediment. Depending on the results of the companies had mined 948,083 metric tons (t) at a grade of feasibility studies, Energizer planned to start a new mine to Madagascar—2011 27.1 produce battery-grade V2O5 in 2014. The company expected to exported graphite by 2010 (National Institute of Statistics, 2000, produce between 13% and 14% of the world’s vanadium supply p. 12; Feytis, 2010; Industrial Minerals, 2012). (Cornish, 2011; Grace, 2011). Societe Malagache du Graphite SARL (Somagra) planned to In December 2011, MML signed a joint-venture agreement reopen its mine in eastern Madagascar in late 2011; the mine with Energizer to explore for vanadium and numerous industrial was shut down in the early 2000s. The company planned to minerals. MML engaged in chip sampling at the Fotadrevo produce 1,500 t in the first year of operation, 2,500 t in the vanadium prospect, which was on the Ampanihy property. second year, and the mine’s full capacity of 4,000 t/yr starting In 2012, Energizer planned to drill at Fotadrevo (Malagasy in the third year. Somagra had two graphite deposits with Minerals Ltd., 2012). combined resources of between 8 and 10 Mt that contained between 300,000 and 350,000 t of recoverable graphite Industrial Minerals (Industrial Minerals, 2012). In late 2011, Energizer Resources discovered several graphitic Gemstones.—In recent years, Madagascar was a globally zones at its Green Giant vanadium project. The company significant producer of gemstones that included emerald, ruby, planned to complete the drilling necessary for a resource and sapphire. Emerald was produced near Mananjary; ruby, assessment by August 2012 (Industrial Minerals, 2012). at Andilamena and Vatomandry; and sapphire, at Ilakaka, Rare Earths.—In December 2011, Tantalus Rare Earths Manombe, Marosely, and Sakaraha. AG of Germany estimated that resources at its TRE project on Sapphire was discovered in southern Madagascar at Ilakaka the Ampasindava Peninsula in northwestern Madagascar were and Sakaraha in 1998, and Madagascar became one of the 130 Mt at a grade of 0.08% rare-earth elements. About 20% of world’s leading sapphire producers. Alexandrite and other the rare earths was estimated to be heavy rare earths (Tantalus chrysoberyl, garnet, spinel, zircon, and other gemstones were Rare Earths AG, 2011). also mined at Ilakaka and Sakaraha. In mid-2010, an estimated 50,000 workers were directly or indirectly employed in Mineral Fuels gemstone mining at Ilakaka and Sakaraha compared with about 100,000 in 2005. Mining has declined because of the depletion Coal.—Asia Thai Mining Co. Ltd. of Thailand and Red Island of near-surface deposits, the ban on rough gemstone exports Minerals Ltd. of Australia held deposits in the Greater Sakoa from February 2008 to July 2009, and the global economic Basin with resources of 750 Mt and 180 Mt, respectively. The crisis. Most production at Ilakaka and Sakaraha was attributable companies were considering the development of coal mines with to artisanal miners; only three large-scale mechanized mining an initial capacity of 5 million metric tons per year (Mt/yr) each companies were in operation in 2010. Large-scale operations (O’Neil, 2012). were hampered by high fuel costs and an inability to enforce Lemur Resources Ltd. of Australia held the Ianapera, the mining rights (Pardieu, 2010). Imaloto, and the Sakaraha projects in the northern part of the Blue sapphire was also mined at several primary deposits Greater Sakoa Basin. The company planned to produce 1 Mt/yr by small groups of artisanal miners near Andranondambo. of coal initially at Imaloto; production could be expanded to Nantin Ltd. of Malaysia and about 200 artisanal miners between 3 and 3.5 Mt/yr depending on the development of a produced sapphire at Ankazoabo, which is located north new railway and port. In 2011, Lemur signed an agreement of Andranondambo. Société d’Investissement Australien à with the Government-owned power company Jirama to build a Madagascar of Australia and other mining companies shut new coal-fired power station with a capacity of 45 megawatts down operations in recent years; many buyers were considering adjacent to Imaloto. Other possible consumers of Lemur’s coal relocation to the ruby mines in Mozambique (Pardieu, 2010). included the new power station at the Ambatovy Mine, which EuROMAD S.A.