British miner gets approval to prospect in Baringo county

A London-based miner, Red Rock Resources (RRR) PLC, has turned to Baringo in search of minerals as it targets to tap into Kenya’s mining industry.

The company that has been prospecting for gold in Migori since 2009 has applied for a license to prospect for minerals like gold, copper and iron ore in Baringo in what is expected to change the investment profile of the county.

“An application has been made by RRR for a special license to prospect for all minerals over an area described in the schedule hereto and the said application has been accepted,” said the Commissioner of Mines Moses Masibo in the latest gazette notice.

Mr Masibo added that Baringo County has in the recent months attracted increased interest from mining companies seeking base metals and gold because it has volcanic soils and a geological structure normally rich with minerals.

Several other companies have also applied to prospect for Ruby in Baringo, which has the potential for the occurrence of other minerals.

A surge in global commodity prices and investor appetite for new frontier markets have revived interest in Kenya’s mining potential. Investors are interested in gold, coal and mineral earths such as titanium, rutile, zircon and ilmeni.

Red Rock Executive Chairman Andrew Bell said the company will be on the lookout for potential minerals in the country through new prospecting licenses.

The miner is seeking to support its earnings, faced with declining gold revenues in its current mines in Colombia.

Mr Bell said the company also plans to expand its existing exploration license in Migori to cover more ground and check potential for copper, whose concentration is high.

Red Rock is also awaiting a license to extract gold from the Migori mines, which will make it the second to be issued with a commercial gold mining license after Goldplat.

This will allow Kenyans to firm their foothold on the international gold market. Kenya’s total earnings from gold have tripled in the last two years to Sh6 billion.

The government has proposed a new Bill that will see international companies seeking to exploit Kenya’s minerals pay up to three times the current rates.

The new structure will set specific charges for each mineral away from the current policy that levies the fee at the rate of three per cent of a contract’s value for all minerals.
Source:Business Daily