Russian President Dimitry Medvedev continued his four-country tour of Africa yesterday in the uranium-rich, south-western desert state of Namibia.
Medvedev arrived in the Namibian capital Windhoek from Nigeria, where the two countries signed agreements giving Russia access to a part of Nigeria’s gas deposits in return for investment in infrastructure, including a proposed gas pipeline to Europe.
In Namibia, the Russian leader is scheduled to hold talks with Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba, visit a cemetery where the heroes of Namibia’s independence struggle are buried and pay a courtesy call on the father of the struggle, former Namibian president Sam Nujoma.
Russia supported Namibia’s and other leftist African liberation movements during the Cold War, but has since lost clout on the continent to China, where Beijing is leading a new scramble for oil and minerals.
“The Russian business community has been displaying growing interest of late in entering the promising market of Namibia that possesses rich natural deposits,” Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency quoted presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko as saying.
Russia was particularly interested in Namibia’s energy industry, he said.
Two years ago, Sergei Kiriyenko, head of Russia’s nuclear energy authority Rosatom proposed building a floating nuclear station off Namibia, which suffers chronic energy shortages.
But Namibia does not have a nuclear policy, and the proposal has not been implemented to date.
A Namibian newspaper reported that the national petroleum company Namcor was preparing to sign a deal with Gazprombank, majority-owned by Russian energy giant Gazprom. The contents of the deal had yet to be divulged.
Namibia’s bountiful uranium deposits were also expected to figure prominently in the talks.
SWA Uranium Mines, a majority Russian-owned company has two licenses to prospect for uranium in Namibia. Russia also has interests in Namibia’s oil and gas exploration sector.
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