Sudan has offered Russian investors access to undeveloped gold, copper, and other mineral deposits as it seeks foreign capital during the country’s civil war.
Transitional Sovereignty Council Chairman and army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan made the proposal during talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 30 October.
Al-Burhan says Sudan has identified mineral sites that could be made available to Russian companies, with some considered ready for development, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
No specific deposits, investment amounts, ownership arrangements, or development schedules have been disclosed. Russia has also not announced any commitment to invest in the proposed projects.
Sudan’s state-owned Sudanese Mineral Resources Company (SMRC) estimates that the country produced approximately 70 tonnes of gold in 2025. However, a substantial share of production comes from artisanal and small-scale mining.
Separately, al-Burhan proposed establishing a Russian free economic zone on Sudan’s Red Sea coast for storing and distributing fuel and wheat. He also invited Russian participation in expanding the country’s railway network.
The mining proposal comes as conflict continues between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Displacement caused by the war has contributed to the expansion of unregulated artisanal gold mining and associated mercury and cyanide contamination in northern Sudan, as reported by Mining.com.au last month.
Any development of the deposits offered to Russia would remain subject to agreements, financing, security conditions, and the required technical and regulatory work.
Write to France Pinzon at Mining.com.au
Main image: Sudanese Mineral Resources Company
