Cengiz Holding takes action for a copper mine in Elazığ: An area the size of 409 football fields

Eti Bakır AŞ, one of the companies owned by Mehmet Cengiz—who frequently makes headlines due to the tenders he receives, environmental destruction, and his political connections—has taken action for a copper mine in Elazığ.

According to a report by Şeyda Öztürk from Cumhuriyet, the company's application to the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change has been evaluated. The Ministry announced that the Review and Evaluation Commission (İDK) will meet on August 27 for the project. A final decision regarding the project will be made following the meeting.

Eti Bakır will establish an underground copper mine in an area of 290.81 hectares—the size of 409 football fields—in the Maden district of Elazığ, consisting of treasury land, forests, fields, and private plots.

As part of the operations, ready-mix concrete plants, a pond, and an explosives storage facility will be built in the region. The company will carry out ore extraction in the underground mine. However, it will also source fill material from a limestone quarry for which it previously obtained a permit.

32 MILLION 855 THOUSAND TONS

The ore extracted from the area will be enriched at a flotation plant planned to be established as part of the project and then sent to Eti Bakır's facilities in Samsun or Mazıdağı. The amount of ore to be extracted over the life of the project is stated as 32 million 855 thousand tons. The company had previously designated a 350-hectare area for this project. However, due to a conflict with another mining license, the area was reduced to 290.81 hectares.

100 TREES PER HECTARE

According to the company's 4,884-page Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, 2.5 hectares of the area where the work will be carried out consist of forest land. In the studies conducted within this scope, it was calculated that there are 100 trees per hectare. The number of trees to be cut down for the project was announced as 250. However, the exact number of trees to be cut will be determined by the forest management directorate during the forest permitting process.

News Source: 12punto