(MENAFN- Daily News Egypt) Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi held a meeting in London with Hoda Mansour, Managing Director and Vice Chairperson of Sukari Gold Mines, representing global mining leader AngloGold Ashanti. The talks took place on the sidelines of Badawi's visit to the UK capital as head of the Egyptian-British business delegation for the mining sector.

The two sides explored opportunities to strengthen cooperation with the company, ranked fourth globally in gold mining, and discussed its plans to inject new investments into Egypt following its recent acquisition of two additional licences for gold exploration and exploitation in the Eastern Desert. These new concessions complement AngloGold Ashanti's existing operations and align with its broader development strategy for the Sukari mine.

Badawi reaffirmed the ministry's full support for the company's efforts to increase gold production at Sukari, in line with recent discussions between AngloGold Ashanti and the Prime Minister. He also underscored the importance of accelerating exploration activities in the newly awarded areas under the updated mining agreement framework, which aims to bring Egypt in line with global standards for attracting investment and strengthen its position as a competitive mining destination.

The meeting also addressed potential collaboration in training and human capital development. Both sides discussed the possibility of designing training and qualification programmes for Egyptian geologists and mining engineers at AngloGold Ashanti's operational sites. They further examined cooperation in occupational safety, health, environmental protection and the adoption of the company's leading practices, given its role as a strategic partner to Egypt's mining sector.

The two new licences grant AngloGold Ashanti access to more than 2,200 square kilometres of unexplored terrain within the mineral-rich Arabian-Nubian Shield, offering significant potential for large-scale gold exploration.

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