Mkuju River uranium mine and the Selous boundary change
- Government and regulators Kagasheki, Minister of Natural Resources and Tourism: Said in 2012 that the area to be excised was only 0.8% of the reserve. World Nuclear News
- Communities and civil society Advocacy sources: Give an area of about 200 square kilometres.
- International bodies World Heritage Committee (36 COM 8B.43): The decision does not give the size of the excised area.
- Government and regulators Tanzanian government / project backers: Expected 'hundreds of jobs' from the pilot plant and a dividend of about US$ 40 million a year on the state's 20% share.
- Communities and civil society Uranium Network: Estimated that the mine would produce 60 million tonnes of radioactive and toxic waste in 10 years.
- International bodies World Heritage Committee: Approved the change as exceptional and unique, with conditions including a new forest area, no mining in the remainder, and investor contributions to a conservation fund; regretted that it was submitted as a minor modification.
In 2012 the World Heritage Committee approved a change to the boundary of Tanzania's Selous Game Reserve so that a uranium mine could be developed, calling the decision exceptional. A pilot processing plant opened in July 2025.
Statement by the minister; the Committee decision does not give the size of the excised area and advocacy sources give about 200 km².
Status As of July 2025: pilot processing plant opened; main plant planned for 2029.
- ARMZ / Rosatom (51% of the project in 2012) and Uranium One as operator — Rights to develop the uranium project after the boundary change. World Nuclear News
- Tanzanian government — 20% share in the project; expected dividend of about US$ 40 million a year.
- Local people — Mentioned in the Committee decision in one clause, on respect for their economic and social needs.
- Selous Game Reserve — Area excised for the mine; elephants fell from about 70,000 (2005) to 13,000 (2013); the Julius Nyerere dam was added to the danger grounds in 2018.
What happened
The Mkuju River uranium project lies inside the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania, a World Heritage site of 50,000 square kilometres. ARMZ, a subsidiary of the Russian state nuclear company Rosatom, acquired the project in 2011 by buying the Australian company Mantra Resources. In 2012 the project was run by Uranium One on behalf of ARMZ, which held 51%.
In July 2012 the World Heritage Committee, in decision 36 COM 8B.43, approved a change to the reserve's boundary to allow mining. The decision stated that boundary changes made for mining should go through the 'significant modification' procedure and expressed regret that the request had been submitted as a 'minor modification'. It approved the change nonetheless, as an exceptional and unique case. The conditions included adding a new area of forest in its place, no mining in the remaining area, and a contribution by investors to a conservation fund. Local people are mentioned in one clause only, on respect for their economic and social needs.
Tanzania's Minister of Natural Resources and Tourism, Kagasheki, said in 2012 that the area to be excised was 'only 0.8%' of the reserve and that the mine would give the country an opportunity to meet its social and economic goals. The decision text does not state the size of the excised area. Advocacy sources give about 200 square kilometres, whereas 0.8% of 50,000 square kilometres corresponds to about 400 square kilometres.
The reserve's condition was already under pressure. Selous was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2014 after its elephant count fell from about 70,000 in 2005 to 13,000 in 2013. In 2018 the Julius Nyerere dam, inside the reserve, was added to the grounds for the danger listing. A 2,115-megawatt dam inside the reserve is also recorded as approved. Uranium Network estimated that the mine would produce 60 million tonnes of radioactive and toxic waste over ten years.
A pilot processing plant was opened on 31 July 2025 by Mantra Tanzania, a Rosatom subsidiary, with the president attending. The main plant is planned for 3,000 tonnes a year and expected to start in 2029. The government holds a 20% share; the sources record expectations of 'hundreds of jobs' from the pilot plant and a dividend of about US$ 40 million a year on the state's share.
- 2009Start of the period covered by the record (2009 to 2019)
- 2011ARMZ (Rosatom) acquires the Australian company Mantra Resources and with it the Mkuju River project
- 2012July: World Heritage Committee approves the boundary change for the mine (36 COM 8B.43); minister says the excised area is 'only 0.8%'
- 2013Report to the Committee in February did not cover implementation of the decision; elephant count at 13,000
- 2014Selous placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger
- 2018Julius Nyerere dam inside the reserve added to the grounds for danger listing (decision 43 COM 7A.16, 2019)
- 202531 July: pilot uranium processing plant opened; main plant planned for 2029
What was said
Where accounts differ
Each party's account, side by side, with its source. The record does not settle these points; it shows them.
Said in 2012 that the area to be excised was only 0.8% of the reserve.
World Nuclear NewsGive an area of about 200 square kilometres.
The decision does not give the size of the excised area.
Expected 'hundreds of jobs' from the pilot plant and a dividend of about US$ 40 million a year on the state's 20% share.
Estimated that the mine would produce 60 million tonnes of radioactive and toxic waste in 10 years.
Approved the change as exceptional and unique, with conditions including a new forest area, no mining in the remainder, and investor contributions to a conservation fund; regretted that it was submitted as a minor modification.
How it looked
Shown
- The excised area is 'only 0.8%' of the reserve and the mine gives the country an opportunity to meet its social and economic goals.Kagasheki, Minister of Natural Resources and Tourism, 2012 (paraphrased from the record) · World Nuclear News
- The pilot plant would create 'hundreds of jobs' and the state's 20% share is expected to pay a dividend of about US$ 40 million a year.Expectations recorded for the 2025 pilot plant opening
Recorded
- The World Heritage Committee approved the boundary change in July 2012 as 'exceptional and unique' while regretting that it had been submitted as a 'minor modification'.
- The decision does not state the size of the excised area; advocacy sources say about 200 km², while the minister's 0.8% corresponds to about 400 km².
- Elephants in Selous fell from about 70,000 (2005) to 13,000 (2013); the site was listed as in danger in 2014.
- ARMZ (Rosatom) held 51% of the project in 2012; Mantra Tanzania, a Rosatom subsidiary, opened the pilot plant on 31 July 2025.
Who gained
Reached nature or the ground
Gained elsewhere
Responses on record
- tanzania-government (2012): The minister said the area to be excised was only 0.8% of the reserve and that the mine gave the country an opportunity to achieve its social and economic goals. · World Nuclear News
In court and with insurers
Lawsuits and rulings
Insurers
What nature saw
Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.
What we don't know
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
- Disputed How large is the area removed from the reserve?
- Disputed Do the mine's benefits outweigh its effect on the reserve?
Figures
- Insufficient Area (ha): Reported but not independently verified: figure of a World Nuclear News article; the decision itself gives no size.
Record
- None on record The Committee decision does not give the size of the excised area; the minister's 0.8% and the advocacy figure of about 200 km² do not match.
- None on record A February 2013 report to the Committee did not cover implementation of the decision's conditions.
- Insufficient Reported but not independently verified: a reports of a World Nuclear News article gives the excised area as 41,286 hectares (0.8%). It was not checked against the Committee decision.
- Insufficient Reported but not independently verified: that a dam inside the reserve was built after the boundary decision.
Did the harm stop?
The sources reviewed do not record any limit on the mine's development after the boundary change; a pilot plant opened in July 2025 and the main plant is planned for 2029.
Who paid?
Not established in the sources reviewed. The record lists the reserve's elephant decline and the dam among the grounds for the danger listing; it does not state who bore the costs of the mine.
Sources
Press and investigations
- Mkuju River boundary changeWorld Nuclear News · 2012-07-06
Connected cases
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- Tanzania's Tokomeza anti-poaching drive: 19 deaths, four ministers removed Tanzania · 2013
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