Photo taken on July 20, 2017 shows mining area near the extraction plant of lead and zinc deposits, in Minas de Matahambre, in the province of Pinar del Rio, Cuba. The sleepy former mining town of Minas de Matahambre, in Cuba's westernmost province of Pinar del Rio, is undergoing a revival of sorts, thanks to an ambitious project to revive the area's dormant industry. (Xinhua/Joaquin Hernandez)
by Raul Menchaca
PINAR DEL RIO, Cuba, July 24 (Xinhua) -- The sleepy former mining town of Minas de Matahambre, in Cuba's westernmost province of Pinar del Rio, is undergoing a revival of sorts, thanks to an ambitious project to revive the area's dormant industry.
Mining activity was idled for a decade, but is beginning to be reactivated by the Caribbean Mining Company (Enmicar), which aims to mine and process the area's Castellanos lead and zinc deposits.
A joint venture between state-run Geominera de Cuba and international consortium Trafigura, Emincar is investing upwards of 270 million U.S. dollars to mine the deposits over an 11-year period.
A modern mineral processing plant built just 1.5 kilometers from the deposits is expected to begin operating in October, enabling the company to export an estimated 470,000 tons of lead and 1.4 million tons of zinc in the coming decade.
Once the plant is fully operational, it should produce 50,000 tons of lead concentrate and 100,000 tons of zinc concentrate a year, to be shipped by sea from the nearby port of Santa Lucia to Cuba's deep-sea port and container terminal at Mariel, near Havana, and from there to other parts of the world.
"In this first stage, we are going to work on putting the plant into operation. In the second stage of the plan, in 2018, we are going to increase production volume, and we are working precisely on that," geologist Justo Hernandez, the project's assistant general manager representing the Cuban partner, told Xinhua.
The plant can process up to 161 tons of minerals an hour, to obtain six tons of lead and 12 tons of zinc concentrate, pulverizing the raw material in mills to the approximate size of 35 microns, practically powder.
While the market tends to fluctuate, lead prices currently stand at around 1,200 dollars a ton, and zinc at around 1,600 dollars a ton, and international demand for both remains robust.
Less than 2 kilometers away from the Castellanos deposits, geologists have identified another even larger mineral reserve, which could help extend the life of the project from a decade to some 25 years.
Geologists are also looking into whether they can make use of the residual gold obtained from processing the lead and zinc.
The Castellanos project is part of the Cuban government's plans to strengthen and diversify the country's economy through domestic reforms and foreign investment.
