Montepuez Ruby Mining (MRM), a ruby mining company in Mozambique, has announced that 44 people have been arrested at its facilities this year on charges of illegally exploiting the natural resource.
The company said in a statement that it had suffered a large-scale raid at its MRM mine involving 150 people, at which time a police officer from the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) and a security guard were taken hostage and threatened ‘not to ask for help’. They were, however, ‘released unharmed’ after reinforcements arrived.
In the document, the MRM said that the action took place on Friday 15 November, pointing out that the leaders and those involved in the invasion, some of whom are foreigners, have already been identified.
‘A total of 44 foreign nationals were arrested in connection with illegal mining in the MRM in 2024. We are warning of the dangers of illegal mining in order to dissuade individuals from putting themselves and others at risk,’ he emphasised.
MRM is 75% owned by Gemfields and 25% by Mwiriti Limitada, a Mozambican company. Since 2012 (when mining began, with ruby auctions starting two years later), the mine has accumulated revenues of more than 63.2 billion meticals (one billion dollars), paying the state 16.2 billion meticals (257.4 million dollars) in the same period.
Last year, MRM paid the state 3.3 million meticals (53.2 million dollars) in royalties and taxes. The mining company operates in the Montepuez ruby deposit, located in the north-east of Mozambique, in the province of Cabo Delgado, covering approximately 33,600 hectares, and has already created more than 1,500 jobs locally, 95 per cent of which are for Mozambicans, 65 per cent from Cabo Delgado.
