Which Gold Mining Company is Best in Sudan?
Gold Mining Company
Sudan is one of the world’s most important gold producers. Its mineral sector contributes 4% to the country’s GDP. This is largely due to the country’s rich resources of gold, iron ore, chromite, zinc, and many other minerals. In recent years, the government has been encouraging mining companies to invest in the country’s gold and other mineral industries.
Gold Mining Companies in Sudan
Russia’s smuggling network in Sudan has been a central part of Moscow’s Africa strategy, sources tell CNN. They say Moscow has hidden its dealings in this area from official records for more than a decade and that it dominates the trade that accounts for about 85% of Sudan’s gold exports.
The gold smuggling has been driven by a company called Meroe Gold, an offshoot of the Wagner Group, a shadowy network of private military operatives and mining companies controlled by a close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin that has expanded aggressively across a swath of Africa. Its mercenaries have also been deployed to Mali and other African states to provide security and political influence for unstable regimes.
Which Gold Mining Company is Best in Sudan?
While the smuggling has helped Russia build up its state coffers, it’s also served as an effective way to evade Western sanctions, according to sources familiar with the practice. Its smugglers have been able to skirt international financial monitoring systems and bolster Moscow’s state-owned companies, including Russia’s oil giant Rosneft.
Sudanese Companies engaged in Gold Mining
Over the last two years, Russia has been meddling in a wide range of activities in Sudan, according to several sources familiar with the matter. It has been trying to oust President Omar al-Bashir, an authoritarian politician who is a strong supporter of Russia’s president, Putin. It has also tried to take control of the country’s mining industry, a lucrative business.
It has even been smuggling gold from Darfur, the disputed region in the south of the country that has a large population of gold miners. It is believed that the Russian company is helping the RSF, a paramilitary group led by Gen. Mohamed “Hemetti” Hamdan Dagalo, the deputy chairman of Sudan’s military junta.
Firms involved in Gold Extraction in Sudan
Meroe Gold is owned by Prigozhin, a Russian oligarch who has been targeted for his role in financing a troll factory that was accused of spreading fake news about the 2016 US election. The Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on Meroe and the Wagner Group as part of a raft of measures targeting Prigozhin for his role in this smuggling operation, according to sources familiar with the matter.
In October 2017, the Bashir administration gave the Russian company an operating permit to operate a small, semi-processed gold mine in al-Ibeediya, a remote desert region 200 miles north of Khartoum, where the Wagner Group has a large base. The permit and access to cheap gold ore allowed Meroe to make a profit, the sources said.
But the company has been smeared by locals and pro-democracy activists as a pawn of Russia. It has triggered protests, killed local gold miners and displaced families.