The Ministry of Mines and Mineral Resources and the National Minerals Agency have clarified that JM Mining Kenema (SL) Limited never held a Large-Scale Mining Licence in Sierra Leone, contrary to claims that the Government withdrew the company’s licence.
In a detailed statement issued on Wednesday, 5 August 2026, the two institutions said JM Mining was offered a Large-Scale Mining Licence in January 2025, subject to the company formally accepting the offer and paying US$1.1 million in statutory licence and monitoring fees.
According to the Government, the company failed to meet both conditions despite receiving several extensions and more than one year to fulfil its financial obligations. The conditional offer consequently lapsed and the application file was closed.
The statement described as inaccurate any suggestion that a mining licence had been revoked, insisting that no licence was ever issued to JM Mining because the company did not complete the legally required payment process.
“This is the single most important point. What JM Mining received in January 2025 was an approval to grant a licence—a conditional offer,” the statement noted.
It explained that under Section 108(5) of the Mines and Minerals Development Act, a Large-Scale Mining Licence could only be issued after the applicant accepted the offer in writing and paid all prescribed fees.
The Government said JM Mining did neither within the legally stipulated period. Therefore, there was no valid licence that could have been withdrawn or taken away.
The statement further outlined several interventions reportedly made by the Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources and the National Minerals Agency to support the company’s proposed investment.
JM Mining first wrote to the Minister on 17 December 2023, complaining that the Environment Protection Agency had halted its exploration activities.
On 16 April 2024, the Minister reportedly met the company’s Chief Executive Officer to discuss the dispute. The Minister later wrote formally on 20 May 2024, committing to engage the Minister of Environment in an effort to resolve the matter and allow JM Mining to continue its activities.
The communication was copied to the Ministry of Environment, the Environment Protection Agency and the Paramount Chief of Nongowa Chiefdom. The National Minerals Agency was also instructed to provide guidance and support to the company throughout the licensing process.
The Minerals Advisory Board subsequently considered JM Mining’s application on 18 December 2024 and recommended that it be approved.
The approval of the licence offer was formally communicated to the company on 23 January 2025. Under the law, JM Mining was required to accept the offer in writing within 30 days and pay the prescribed statutory fees before the licence could be issued.
However, the Government said the National Minerals Agency deliberately withheld the payment demand for approximately six months to give the company sufficient time to secure financing for the proposed operation.
Orders to Pay were eventually issued on 24 July 2025, requiring JM Mining to pay US$1 million in licence fees and US$100,000 in monitoring fees within 30 days.
The payment deadline expired on 23 August 2025 without the company making the required payments.
On 28 October 2025, the National Revenue Authority issued a formal payment demand. JM Mining reportedly requested additional time until the end of December 2025 to settle the outstanding fees.
The company’s self-requested deadline of 31 December 2025 also passed without payment.
On 29 January 2026, JM Mining requested a new Order to Pay, which the Government said amounted to an acknowledgement that the original payment order had not been honoured.
The following day, 30 January 2026, the Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources formally confirmed that the licence offer had lapsed and was rescinded, bringing the application process to an end.
The Ministry and NMA said JM Mining had been given 372 days from the date the licence offer was approved and 190 days from the date the payment orders were issued.
Despite the extended period, the company had not paid the US$1.1 million statutory fees as of the date of the Government’s statement.
The authorities also cited correspondence in which JM Mining allegedly admitted that it had defaulted on its obligations.
In a letter to the Commissioner-General of the National Revenue Authority dated 31 October 2025, the company’s Chief Executive Officer reportedly acknowledged that JM Mining was overdue in paying the annual Large-Scale Mining Licence fee and the related monitoring fee.
The company made a similar admission in a letter to the Director of Mines dated 15 January 2026, stating that it had been overdue in paying the licence fees since 24 August 2025.
On 29 January 2026, the Chief Executive Officer again wrote to the Director of Mines requesting a new Order to Pay for the licence and monitoring fees.
The Government rejected claims that the company was not given sufficient time, arguing that the law provided only 30 days, while JM Mining was allowed more than 12 months to complete the process.
It also dismissed suggestions that the company was in good standing, maintaining that the statutory fees remained unpaid and that the company had acknowledged the default in writing on three separate occasions.
Responding to allegations that the decision was arbitrary, the Government said the matter was reviewed by the Minerals Advisory Board before the Minister made a final decision.
The company was also reportedly informed in writing about how and where to present its case, while the final decision was communicated through a formal letter explaining the reasons for closing the file.
The Ministry and NMA further rejected claims that the Government was hostile to foreign investors.
They maintained that the Minister personally intervened in the company’s dispute with the Environment Protection Agency, met its Chief Executive Officer and directed the National Minerals Agency to support the company during the application process.
The Government reaffirmed Sierra Leone’s commitment to attracting serious and compliant investment into the mining sector but stressed that all companies must meet the same legal and financial requirements.
According to the statement, waiving the statutory conditions for one company would be unfair to other mining operators that had fulfilled their obligations under the law.
“The mineral resources of Sierra Leone belong to the people of Sierra Leone. They will be entrusted to those who meet their obligations under the law,” the statement concluded.
The Ministry and the National Minerals Agency said every assertion contained in their clarification was supported by dated correspondence and official documents held in their records, adding that a fully referenced chronology of the matter was available.
