This article was published on June 18, 2025, at 3:30 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.
The Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation (KOMIR) is pushing for the sale of its investment corporation for the Tegida project in Niger, West Africa. The Tegida project is the first case in which Korea, which had relied on imports for uranium used in domestic nuclear power plants, has initiated its own development.
According to investment banking (IB) industry sources on the 18th, the Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation is seeking to sell an 80% stake in the investment corporation, Sarisbury Limited, for the Niger Tegida project. The corporation had previously invested $14.8 million in the investment firm in 2010 to acquire shares in the uranium mine. The remaining 20% stake is held by a Chinese company, Trendfield (THL).
The Tegida project is a uranium mining operation located 850 km northeast of the Nigerien capital, Niamey. The area has an estimated reserve of about 13,000 tons, with an expected annual uranium production of 700 tons. The equity in the uranium mining project is held in the following order: China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC, 37.2%), Niger’s Sopamin (33%), China’s ZXJoy Invest (24.8%), and Sarisbury (5%). According to China’s Ministry of Commerce, China National Nuclear Corporation has invested approximately $480 million in the Niger uranium project.
The Tegida project was halted in 2015 due to decreased production and cost overruns, and is currently considering resuming production. The Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation appears to have decided to sell its equity considering the business viability, as it is in need of management normalization due to financial difficulties. As of the end of last year, the corporation's capital impairment amounted to 2.5668 trillion won.
Industry sources believe that China will likely acquire equity in the Tegida project. An IB industry official noted, “If equity is sold to a third party, a Chinese consortium may exercise its right of first refusal.” Niger is the seventh largest uranium producer after Uzbekistan and Russia. With Niger having exported uranium to Iran last year, ending military cooperation with the United States, the possibility of China expanding its influence is significant.
However, there are concerns about the sale of the uranium business, one of the six strategic minerals, as the government has initiated efforts to stabilize the supply chain for key minerals. The government recently set plans in the Supply Chain Stabilization Committee to reduce dependence on specific countries for minerals to below 50% by 2030. According to Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), Korea currently imports about half of its total uranium imports from Russia (48.58%).
Meanwhile, the Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation is moving forward with the sale of a rare earth production company established jointly with China and the sale of the Boleo copper mine in Mexico, in which it has invested about 2 trillion won, as part of efforts to improve its financial structure. It is understood that negotiations are ongoing with overseas potential buyers that have submitted letters of intent (LOI) regarding the conditions for the acquisition. The advisory firms for the sale are EIP Asset Management and CIBC Capital Markets, a subsidiary of Canada's Imperial Bank.