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Ndassima is a gold mine in
Prior to foreign ownership, the mine was dug by hand.
Central African Republic based, Toronto-registered Axmin was given granted a license to operate the mine in 2010.
UPC rebels took control of the mine during the
Ouaka
Ouaka is one of the 20 Prefectures of the Central African Republic, prefectures of the Central African Republic. It borders the Democratic Republic of the Congo, covers an area of 49,900 km2, and has a population of 276,710 (2003 census). In ...
prefecture in Central African Republic
The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...
. It is the nation's only industrialized gold mine.
It was taken from the legal owners, Axmin Inc., during the civil war in 2013 before being seized by Wagner Group
The Wagner Group (), officially known as PMC Wagner (, ), is a Russian state-funded private military company (PMC) controlled 2023 Wagner Group plane crash, until 2023 by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former close ally of Russia's president Vladimir Pu ...
around 2017.
Description
Ndassima is one of the largest mines in the Central African Republic, covering an area of 138 square miles.History
Prior to foreign ownership, the mine was dug by hand.
Central African Republic based, Toronto-registered Axmin was given granted a license to operate the mine in 2010.
UPC rebels took control of the mine during the Central African Republic Civil War
The Central African Republic Civil War is an ongoing civil war in the Central African Republic (CAR) involving the successive governments, rebels from the former ' coalition, the Anti-balaka militias, and various foreign and international fo ...
in 2013.
In June 2013, heavy rains provoked the collapse of the mine, killing 37 miners and injuring many others. On August 22, 2014 the mine collapsed again killing at least 25 people.
Wagner Group
The Wagner Group (), officially known as PMC Wagner (, ), is a Russian state-funded private military company (PMC) controlled 2023 Wagner Group plane crash, until 2023 by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former close ally of Russia's president Vladimir Pu ...
took over the mine around 2017, and the mine's owners Axmin reported being notified that their permit to operate the mine was cancelled in 2019. Shortly later the company reported that Midas Ressources was awarded their operating license. Midas brought in heavy equipment and turned the mine into the nation's first industrialized gold mine.
In 2021, in Boyo, Wagner Group fighters massacred villagers who were perceived to be aligned with the UPC.
On 10 February 2021 government forces recaptured the mine. Two days later UPC launched an attack on Ndassima which was repelled by army forces with help from Russian mercenaries. Legal ownership of the asset remains in dispute and Axmin still holds the mining convention pending resolution at law.
See also
* Mining industry of the Central African RepublicReferences
{{reflist Gold mines Mining in the Central African Republic Populated places in Ouaka