Bangladesh’s first iron ore mine discovered in Dinajpur

[Nilgiri]

The weight of total discovered volume is, [{(6 +10)/2 sq.km x 1000 x1000} x 400ft/3.28] x 7.8 t/m^3 = about 7.5 billion metric ton. @105.79 per ton being today's market rate of IRON ORE, the total market value of this mine is $750 billion. It is a quite big mine.

But how big? I give one example. Japan's production of steel is about 100 million ton per year. With 65% iron content, this mine (7.5 billion ton) can feed the giant Japanese steel mills for about 50 years. So, it is very large.

However, I think extracting ore from an underground mine is more expensive than it is from the mountains. Anyway, BD has discovered a new wealth that should be extracted fast.

LOL, thats a terrible analysis.

BD is better off ignoring this and focusing money on actual value based industries.

Do you have any idea the amount of heavy capital and logistics needing to be sunk in for mining?...to make just a small return (far in the long term) in the end? That is why the scales have to be huge and only countries with such scale and empty land can feasibly do it.

In population dense BD, its a no-start. Rio Tinto will slam the phone down on you after calling you a rude word.

Iron ore is not exactly facing a shortage right now to make sudden fresh investment anyway.

 

[bluesky]

Do you have any idea the amount of heavy capital and logistics needing to be sunk in for mining?...to make just a small return (far in the long term) in the end? That is why the scales have to be huge and only countries with such scale and empty land can feasibly do it.

Yours is just another opinion without practical applications. Let the feasibility study people do their job. I have said only the international value which is a staggering $750 billion by yesterday's international spot price. It is worthy of BD exploiting this mine even if the cost itself is $750 billion to do so.

Why? It will cause people to be employed in the productive high-value industries associated with this ore. BD itself needs it. Unlike oil and gas, new wealth is created by concerted efforts and activities in farms, mines, and industries by the people of a country.

So, let the foreign experienced mining companies study the feasibility. How about the Australian ones? But, Australia is too rich with its own mines and the companies there have little propensity to go to a hot and humid country.

 

[Nilgiri]

Yours is just another opinion without practical applications. Let the feasibility study people will do their job. I have said only the international value of this ore deposit. It is a staggering $750 billion by yesterday's international spot price. It is worthy of BD exploiting this mine even if the cost itself is $750 billion to do so.

Why? It will cause people to be employed in the productive high-value industries associated with this ore. BD itself needs it. Unlike oil and gas, new wealth is created by concerted efforts and activities in farms, mines, and industries by the people of a country.

So, let the foreign experienced mining companies study the feasibility. How about the Australian ones? But, Australia is too rich with its own mines and the companies there have little propensity to go to a hot and humid country.

Please do a calculation as to what BD would need to invest to start extracting the ore and even semi-processing it. It is all capital sink stuff. Add terrible BD logistics to it, and no one is gonna be interested.

Simply BD cannot compete with the established chains (that people are still waiting on returns) invested elsewhere in countries with far more land to do actual mining.

 

[bluesky]

I highly doubt you are dumb or misinformed enough to think this but do correct it. Currently, would population is over 7.7 billion and by 2050, it'll near 10 billion people.

Thanks. I have corrected the figure(s).

 

[Bilal9]

Some schmuck here openly discouraging iron ore mining in Bangladesh in the hopes their Indian iron ore or billet has a ready market in Bangladesh and we remain a dependent entity. I don't remember anyone here asking for this schmuck's biased opinion.

 

[Arulmozhi Varman]

Yours is just another opinion without practical applications. Let the feasibility study people will do their job. I have said only the international value of this ore deposit. It is a staggering $750 billion by yesterday's international spot price. It is worthy of BD exploiting this mine even if the cost itself is $750 billion to do so.

Why? It will cause people to be employed in the productive high-value industries associated with this ore. BD itself needs it. Unlike oil and gas, new wealth is created by concerted efforts and activities in farms, mines, and industries by the people of a country.

So, let the foreign experienced mining companies study the feasibility. How about the Australian ones? But, Australia is too rich with its own mines and the companies there have little propensity to go to a hot and humid country.

Actually he is right. Iron ore currently has a glut in International markets with less buyers and more sellers. Same goes for steel production as well as the steel prices are hitting record lows. Thanks to increasing capacity in China and India. Right now no private entity will invest in a new ore mine. You can export the iron ore to some India based steel maker, but to know that we ourselves are exporting our ores point out to the issues right now in investing.

 

[Bengal71]

Actually he is right. Iron ore currently has a glut in International markets with more buyers and less sellers. Same goes for steel production as well as the steel prices are hitting record lows. Thanks to increasing capacity in China and India. Right now no private entity will invest in a new ore mine. You can export the iron ore to some India based steel maker, but to know that we ourselves are exporting our ores point out to the issues right now in investing.

I agree, iron is plentiful in the market now. I also don't think BD will be able to dislocate so many people and their houses to mine it

 

[Bilal9]

^^^
I beg to differ. Although somewhat expensive, we should still explore iron ore refining capability to supply our local market (~30+% today and increasing rapidly), as well as increasing exports to Africa, which our nascent steel sector is already pursuing. Costs of steel production (even pig Iron) is lower than many other exporters in the region and producing steel from local ore could be lucrative for us, as an adjunct to producing high quality steel from ship-breaking scrap.

You guys should take a lesson from how quickly some Indians are jumping in here howling like foxes in one tone - 'Not profitable, no, not at all....da..da..da'. Shob shialer ek ra.

What country depends on imported pig Iron for making their own tubewells, water pumps, sanitary pipes, marine accessories, manhole covers....you guessed it...us!!!

This is disgusting....!

Just leave it up to the industry consultants to measure feasibility of iron ore mining. And don't listen to self-appointed 'experts'.

 

[UKBengali]

^^^
I beg to differ. Although somewhat expensive, we should still explore iron ore refining capability to supply our local market (~30+% today and increasing rapidly), as well as increasing exports to Africa, which our nascent steel sector is already pursuing. Costs of steel production (even pig Iron) is lower than many other exporters in the region and producing steel from local ore could be lucrative for us, as an adjunct to producing high quality steel from ship-breaking scrap.

You guys should take a lesson from how quickly some Indians are jumping in here howling like foxes in one tone - 'Not profitable, no, not at all....da..da..da'. Shob shialer ek ra.

What country depends on imported pig Iron for making their own tubewells, water pumps, sanitary pipes, marine accessories, manhole covers....you guessed it...us!!!

This is disgusting....!

Just leave it up to the industry consultants to measure feasibility of iron ore mining. And don't listen to self-appointed 'experts'.

Yep as long as overhead disruption is small, BD should look at extracting this precious resource.

 

[Indos]

The ore should be processed inside the country to create added value. There should be law created to make it happen just like in Indonesia we forbid raw material to be exported without being processed inside the country.

 

[Bilal9]

The ore should be processed inside the country to create added value. There should be law created to make it happen just like in Indonesia we forbid raw material to be exported without being processed inside the country.

Exactly brother.

Value addition should be conducted inside the country - that way you make use of local labor and that creates additional local jobs for your citizens.

 

[bluesky]

Please do a calculation as to what BD would need to invest to start extracting the ore and even semi-processing it. It is all capital sink stuff. Add terrible BD logistics to it, and no one is gonna be interested.

Simply BD cannot compete with the established chains (that people are still waiting on returns) invested elsewhere in countries with far more land to do actual mining.

It has not yet rained and you are worried about flooding. Let the mining people decide about the cost of investment. No free lunch anywhere. Do you think the GoB itself will buy machines, dig holes, put railway lines inside the holes and hundred other things? it is the mining companies that will do these and will get the share of profit.

India is rich with iron ores. So, let us hear about your experience there. What is your good idea? Do you think the GoB will invest $750 billion to get the iron ore that will be sold at $750 billion?

 

[bluesky]

Actually he is right. Iron ore currently has a glut in International markets with more buyers and less sellers. Same goes for steel production as well as the steel prices are hitting record lows. Thanks to increasing capacity in China and India. Right now no private entity will invest in a new ore mine. You can export the iron ore to some India based steel maker, but to know that we ourselves are exporting our ores point out to the issues right now in investing.

Some of the Indian guys are talking with a static mind. But, BD is a developing country and its current 8 MT demands of steel are met by importing scraps from foreign sources. Now, if the country keeps on developing the demand will also keep on rising to a level of, say, 50 million tons per year. Which one do you think is preferable? Shall it keep on buying scraps at, say, more than $1200 per ton from the outer sources or will use its own iron ores as it is available now?

A few years after the take-off stage the steel demand will steeply rise like other developing and developed countries. For example, even after more than 150 years of the development process, Japan still produces 100 MT of steel in its own mills. So, our own source of iron ore will certainly help us and the money will be circulated inside the country making our people richer.

 

[Bengal71]

^^^
I beg to differ. Although somewhat expensive, we should still explore iron ore refining capability to supply our local market (~30+% today and increasing rapidly), as well as increasing exports to Africa, which our nascent steel sector is already pursuing. Costs of steel production (even pig Iron) is lower than many other exporters in the region and producing steel from local ore could be lucrative for us, as an adjunct to producing high quality steel from ship-breaking scrap.

You guys should take a lesson from how quickly some Indians are jumping in here howling like foxes in one tone - 'Not profitable, no, not at all....da..da..da'. Shob shialer ek ra.

What country depends on imported pig Iron for making their own tubewells, water pumps, sanitary pipes, marine accessories, manhole covers....you guessed it...us!!!

This is disgusting....!

Just leave it up to the industry consultants to measure feasibility of iron ore mining. And don't listen to self-appointed 'experts'.

Well lets say it is possible to make it profitable and I am not against development of steel industries with our own ore. How is iron ore mined, open pit or through tunnels? If it's open pit then I don't see how BD can dislocate so many people and their homes.

 

[mb444]

As with everything any action should be taken after cost and benefit is quantified.

At the moment there is global overproduction of steel, british steel just closed its largest plant only last month.

At this moment is it worth exploring this in BD? I would say maybe not.

BD gets its steel from shipbuilding. What happens there and all the associated industries that support.

Relocating ppl in the most dense nation on the planet is not going to be easy and I would not support anything that the locals do not want.

Furthermore there is environmental cost to mining.

On the positive note it will save foreign currency on importing steel/ships etc, encourage development of new industries and this may be less environmentally damaging than ship breaking.

Everything should be done on the basis of rational analysis. The good thing is its not going anywhere and can be exploited to derive maximum benefit when the timing is correct.