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During the Council of Ministers meeting he chaired on Sunday, the President of the Republic underscored the need to implement these three mining projects at “maximum speed.” These include the Gara Djebilet iron mine, the Oued Amizour zinc and lead mine and the Bled El Hadba phosphate mine, given their “major boost” to the national economy.

The President of the Republic also ordered to choose suitable sites for purification and treatment units, ensuring their proximity to water resources, energy sources and railways, according to the statement of the Council of Ministers.

These instructions further underscore the importance of these mining projects, which are designated as “priority” projects. They are “at the heart of the strategy of diversifying the national economy” and are seen as “drivers of local development in their host regions, through job generation, industrial activities and the development of the rail network.”

The operation of these mining sites will boost the national industry, notably through the processing of extracted raw materials.

The Gara Djebilet iron mine, Tindouf, project is already underway, with the exploitation of the deposit in July 2022, followed by the launch of the primary iron ore processing plant project in December 2023. This mine ranks among the world's largest in terms of reserves, boasting nearly 3.5 billion tons of iron ore and a production capacity of 2 to 3 million tons/year in a first stage (2022-2025).

The Bled El-Hadba, Tebessa, integrated phosphate project (PPI) is set to position Algeria as one of the leading exporters of fertilizers, with a projected annual output exceeding 6 million tons of phosphate products.

As for the project to exploit the zinc and lead deposit in Oued Amizour, Bejaia, it is also regarded as a world-class due to its exploitable mining potential, estimated at 34 million tons for an annual production of 170,000 tons of zinc concentrate.

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