Representatives of the BRICS countries at a three-day round table of geological services in Moscow supported the creation of a common platform, which was presented by the head of the Federal Agency for Subsoil Use (Rosnedra), Evgeny Petrov.

“I am sure that in the conditions of the new economy, such dense interaction will become the basis for the development of joint geological programmes and will help to intensify the exchange of knowledge, methodology, and experience,” the report said.

The platform is expected to provide opportunities for knowledge sharing, technological development, the exchange of practical experience, and joint events. Its conceptual structure envisages a coordinating council, a commission on joint projects, a council on technology transfer, a working group on essential minerals, a group of experts, and targeted agency structures.

Prospects for future cooperation may include:

• geological exploration;
• regional geological studies;
• strategic minerals.

This will be supplemented by scientific and technical developments in the field of digitalisation in geology.

The first meeting of the heads of BRICS geological services took place from July 15 to 17 in Moscow. It was attended by the leaders of the geological services of Russia, South Africa, China, India, the UAE, Egypt, Brazil, Ethiopia, and Iran. The parties discussed work on the supply and processing of complementary resources and proposed to form a common map of mineral reserves held by all the countries of the group.

The event was based on four industry tracks to present the competencies of BRICS geological services, bilateral meetings, and negotiations with China, Ethiopia, South Africa, and India. The round table was arranged by the Federal Subsoil Resources Management Agency of the Russian Federation with the support of the autonomous non-profit organisation “Digital Subsoil Use”.

African Times published this article in partnership with International Media Network TV BRICS