Next month, Uganda will open its first domestic tin processing facility

According to a senior Mining Ministry official, Uganda will commission its first tin refining plant in the southwest area next month as part of its attempts to increase capacity and add value to its minerals domestically.

In a nation with many gold refineries and a recently granted mining license to Chinese-backed Sunbird Resources for the manufacturing of cement, President Yoweri Museveni seeks to maximize the benefits of exports.

Irene Bateebe, permanent secretary of the Energy and Mineral Development Ministry, told Reuters on Wednesday that “we are preparing to launch our very first tin processing facility,” adding that the launch would take place the following month.

The plant is owned by Woodcross Resources, a mining and mineral trading company situated in Uganda.

“Tin will be refined to a purity of over 99 percent,” Bateebe continued, declining to disclose the amount of the investment. When contacted for comment, Woodcross did not answer right once.

According to Woodcross’s website, its tin refining plant can process more than 1,000 tons of tin annually, and it has a mining license covering 40 square km (15 sq miles) in Western Uganda.