Benguela – Angola’s minister of Mineral, Oil and Gas Diamantino de Azevedo Thursday announced the government’s decision to punish illegal exploiters of mineral resources, stating that the activity should be performed in accordance with the mining code and environmental law.
The minister announced the decision while speaking on sidelines of Zambian Head of State Hakainde Hichilema’s visit to Benguela province to learn about the economic potential of the region.
"People interested in exploiting any mineral resource in the country should comply with the legislation, and must acquire a title issued by the Ministry," Azevedo said.
The minister added that the government will continue to explore mineral resources that the country has, assuring that it "intends to participate in a fair energy transition, which respects the interests of the countries.
The minister did not rule out the existence of illegal exploration of some minerals, underlining that the mineral sector has used all pedagogical and coercive means to dissuade those carrying out these actions.
Diamantino de Azevedo added that the Angolan government is seeking to improve oil and gas exploration in environmental terms, with decarbonisation and reduction of gas emissions.
In relation to the Lobito refinery project, whose visit was on the agenda of the President of the Republic of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema, the minister said despite the project being halt for long time, the government decided to reactivate it as part of the refining strategy for the country, which includes improving Luanda Refinery and building three new refineries in Benguela, Cabinda and Zaire.
"The Construction of new refineries, once completed, will not only serve the country, but also the region, given that it will have additional capacity to export, in which the Republic of Zambia has been invited to be a future shareholder," the minister said.
The minister also said that there was a sharply decrease in the costs for the construction of of Lobito Refinary, but Zambia put at 15 percent the proposal, still to be analysed by the Angolan government.
