14 mining projects open new opportunities for local firms

GEITA: THE government has called on local companies to pool capital, technology and expertise to position themselves for a new wave of mining business as 14 major projects move through the development pipeline, potentially expanding an industry procurement market already worth about 5.1tri/- annually.

Minister for Minerals Anthony Mavunde (pictured) said Tanzanian businesses need to scale up early rather than wait for the projects to enter production, as the next generation of mines would create demand for engineering, equipment, explosives, technology,

maintenance and professional services. Speaking during Local Content Day at the Ninth Mining Technology Exhibition in Geita, Mr Mavunde said domestic companies should move beyond routine supply contracts and build the financial and technical capacity required to compete for larger and more specialised assignments. Mining companies currently spend about 5.1tri/- annually on goods and services, with the government targeting at least 90 per cent of that expenditure to remain in Tanzania.

This, Mr Mavunde said, would allow a larger share of mining activity to benefit local businesses, employment, technology and industrial production. The market could expand further as the 14 major projects advance, while holders of another 28 graphite mining licences are being encouraged to move towards production.

Mr Mavunde urged local firms to overcome fragmented competition by combining finance, equipment, technology and professional expertise, particularly where individual companies lack the capacity to undertake major contracts. He said such partnerships should enable Tanzanian companies to establish factories, acquire sophisticated machinery and enter more technically demanding areas of mining.

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The government is also strengthening oversight of partnerships formed under local-content requirements to ensure Tanzanian participation carries genuine commercial value. Mr Mavunde directed the Mining Commission to audit companies operating through joint ventures with Tanzanian partners, focusing on whether local shareholding is reflected in the actual business, transactions and benefits generated from contracts.

The Mining Act requires mineral-right holders to give preference to goods produced or available in Tanzania and services provided by Tanzanians or local companies. Mr Mavunde said the intention was to ensure local-content partnerships developed genuine businesses and technical capability rather than simply satisfy ownership requirements.

Mining Commission Chairperson Dr Janet Reuben Lekashingo said partnerships with foreign companies had helped bring capital, technology, skills and experience into Tanzania, but should ultimately build local companies capable of competing independently.

The goal, she said, was to move Tanzanian firms from participation into ownership, from low-value assignments into higher-value activities and from dependence towards competitiveness. Mr Mavunde said Tanzanian companies should also take a larger role in drilling, engineering, explosives, mining technology, equipment maintenance and manufacturing inputs used by mines.

He said the government’s longer-term objective was to establish businesses capable of manufacturing, engineering and servicing more mining products in Tanzania and eventually competing for business elsewhere in the region. Employment has also increased, with Mr Mavunde saying Tanzanians now hold about 96 per cent of more than 19,000 formal mining jobs, including an increasing number of senior technical and management positions.

The government is also investing more in geological exploration. President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan has approved the allocation of 10 per cent of mining-sector collections to mineral exploration to improve geological information and open additional areas for development. Mr Mavunde said the sector collected 411bn/- in the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year, equivalent to 117 per cent of the 350bn/- target. Mining contributes about 10.3 per cent to gross domestic product.