The Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources, Julius Mattai, has hailed Marampa Mines during the Tuesday weekly government press briefing.
The briefing was held in the conference room of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation at Tower Hill in Freetown.
He said the company had proven itself over the years, adding that just in the previous year Marampa had almost 2.5Million tons of iron ore worth over $228M.
And that the royalty was paid to the government with an excess of $12M.
He maintained that the company has been meeting their obligations as provided by the country’s mining laws.
He added that any company which proves itself to be worthy both technically and financially, it behooves the Government of Sierra Leone to encourage such a company.
He said the $12.8 million paid was in terms of revenue dues to government.
He said that as far as they are concerned, Marampa Mines is on record for being the single mining company that had and is still paying the highest dues in terms of royalties and surface rents to government and communities.
The minister added that government is yet to hear from Sierra Rutile concerning the proposed bid from Craig Dean’s PRM.
“There is no question about monopoly because Sierra Rutile is engaged in bauxite mining whilst Marampa Mines is engaged in bauxite mining, ”he said.
He maintained that the Government of Sierra Leone is looking for investors and that they would, in no way, discourage serious and genuine investors in the country.