KAFR EL SHIEKH, Egypt, Oct 18 (MENA) - Given the economic value of black sand and in line with the State's commitment to safeguard its mineral treasures, the Nuclear Materials Authority has carried out a comprehensive exploratory research on black sand areas along the Mediterranean and Red Sea coastlines, Chairman of the Egyptian Black Sand Company (EBSC) Magdy El Taweel said.

The company chief was speaking during a visit paid by MENA to a black sand separation and concentration factory complex for the Burullus Black Sand Mining Project in the central Nile Delta Governorate of Kafr El Sheikh, about 134 km north of Cairo.

He added that Australian company "Mineral Technologies" had also conducted a feasibility study on black sand utilization and mining in the Burullus area, and the study found that the project has a high economic feasibility and investment attractiveness.

Taweel said all necessary equipment has been supplied and installed at the factory complex, and all construction work is 100 per cent complete, so are operation tests conducted on Tahya Misr dredger, and the equipment deployed to separation and concentration plants.

The EBSC was established in February 2016 with a capital of EGP 1 billion. In 2019, the company signed an agreement with the Egyptian government and the Nuclear Materials Authority to extract and utilize economic minerals from black sand nationwide.

Black sand is heavy black sediment that accumulates on some beaches near the estuaries of the great rivers. It contains many heavy metals such as iron and a small percentage of radioactive metals. It also and contains a high proportion of titanium, which is involved in manufacturing missile structures and high-altitude aircraft.(MENA)

M A A/R E E