Hong Kong based Fortune Oil is venturing into Armenian iron mines. The Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sarkisian met with a delegation from the company led by the Executive Vice Chairman Daniel Chiu. After the meeting it was announced that Fortune Oil would invest around $500 million in the iron mining industry in Armenia.
The company had acquired a 35% stake in Bounty Resources in January 2011 for a sum of $24 million. Bounty Resources is an Armenian iron ore miner that has control of three iron mines. These are located in Hrazdan, Abovyan and Svarants.
The first of these to be developed will be the Hrazdan mine that is said to contain good grade iron ore with 40% concentration of iron. The approximate 77 million tonnes of iron ore it holds will give the mine a life of 15 years. Production at the mine is expected to begin in 2014. The mine in Abovyan is estimated to contain 255 million tonnes of iron ore, while Svarants mine is estimated at 1.5 million tonnes.
The investment by Fortune Oil will create new jobs in the country, enhance technological knowhow and will enrich the local mining industry. Fortune Oil manages operations in oil and gas supply besides infrastructure projects in China.