Portugal’s National Energy and Geology Laboratory (known by its Portuguese initials LNEG) is cooperating with its local counterpart in Timor-Leste to assess the mineral potential of the Southeast Asian country, the Lusa news agency reports.
Project leader Igor Pereira Morais, on his way back to Timor-Leste to resume survey work, told Lusa that there is already “identified potential” for gold as well as critical minerals, namely chromium, nickel and copper. “We have extensive experience in this type of project,” the LNEG geologist said. “We can at least contribute to defining the areas with the highest probability of metallic minerals.”
LNEG is working in collaboration with the Geosciences Institute of Timor-Leste, with support from researchers at the Earth Sciences Department of the University of Coimbra.
If the project confirms the existence of metallic mineral potential in Timor-Leste, it will be up to specialised companies to evaluate the commercial viability of the resources, Morais explained. “We’ve already made an initial inventory. In the next phase, it’s necessary to go to the sites and delve deeper.”
[See more: Timor-Leste is expected to join ASEAN in May]
Extractive industries like metallic mineral resources, LNEG said in a statement to Lusa, are a “decisive factor in the sustainable development of modern societies.” They could also offer Timor-Leste an economic future in a world transitioning away from fossil fuels, long its primary source of revenue.
LNEG and IGTL signed a memorandum of understanding on the joint project last March and began work on the ground a few months later, Morais travelling to Timor-Leste in late August and spending the next month conducting field campaigns aimed at standardising existing data in the field of metallic mineral resources and publishing Timor-Leste’s first maps on the subject.
The cooperation between Portugal and Timor-Leste also extends beyond the survey work, with LNEG supporting the training of Timorese personnel. Two will be hosted at the LNEG Aljustrel campus in Portugal, home to the organisation’s Mineral Resources and Geophysics Unit, in the coming months.
Morais emphasised that LNEG plays “a fundamental role in transferring knowledge between the two countries.” The organisation boasts “extensive experience” in both national and international projects, including in Africa and South America.
