Base Titanium, an Australian mining company in Kwale, has welcomed the move by the National government to lift the moratorium on the issuance of mining rights.
Recently, the Cabinet lifted the moratorium imposed in 2019, ending the four-year battle in the issuance of prospecting licenses to the miners.
The freeze on the issuance of licences was put in place to allow large-scale mapping of the country's mineral deposits and bring sanity to the sector.
Base Titanium External Affairs general manager Simon Wall on Monday said the removal of the mining ban paved the way for the growth of the mining sector in Kenya
He said it is the right decision and new opportunities will rise.
"It is a real positive step in the development of Kenya's mining sector, and it is very exciting to be involved in Kenya's mining sector, " he said.
Wall said lifting the ban has paved the way for the application, processing and issuance of prospecting licenses in line with the Mining Act.
He said the move will trigger more exploration works in identifying new mineral deposits which is good for the economy.
The company had earlier applied for seven prospecting licenses in the North Coast, Lamu and Tana River, and within Kwale (Kwale East and West) and is still waiting for approval.
The Australian firm started operations in 2013 harvesting high-value mineral assemblage rich in futile, ilmenite and zircon.
Wall said they are looking forward to having those licenses issued and starting exploration programmes to discover additional mineral deposits and build new mines across the country.
He said the company is optimistic about finding new minerals in Lamu because of having similar geology to Kwale.
"We believe the mineral deposits found here are also in the North Coast, that's why we want to have a look," he said.
He, however, said they can't embark on the whole process until the licenses are issued.
Wall said the Australian firm has also adhered to the Ministry of Mining directive to update some of the components of applications and documents that were already in the system.
He said the mineral firm acted upon the directive and at the moment, all Base's documents are up to date.
Currently, mining in Kwale is set to end by end of 2024.
In the past 24 months, Base Titanium has been undertaking several explorations in Kwale East in bid to extend the mining life.
Wall said the samples were taken for analysis and in five weeks the results would be out to determine the company's future.
He said once the report is out, they will scale up the stakeholders' engagement internal and external with various levels of government and community, to notify them of the company's decision and plans.
He, however, said the firm has continued to take several steps of possible closure and post-mining programmes.
"Up to now, we are not certain if the explorations in Kwale East will lead to new minerals that are economically viable or not, and to that point it is imperative that Base takes its role in mine closure rehabilitation," he said.
He said it would be an honour to complete a full mine life cycle from development to closure with the same excellence as they ran the mining project.
Lamu Governor Issa Timamy, who was on a mine site tour at the firm in Msambweni, commended the company for doing responsible mining.
He said Base has shown great work in rehabilitating and conserving the environment, unlike many mining firms that degrade the land across the country.
Timamy said the company has also prioritised the safety of its employees and transformed them into competitive workers through the sharing of technology and mining knowledge.
The governor said he was ready to work with Base Titanium and prays that they find minerals in Lamu.
"I have seen for myself what the company does and I strongly hope we get minerals for Lamu residents to benefit and enter into the national grid," he said.
