CORRECTED - FACTBOX-Cameroon oil, minerals investment projects

(Removes reference to mining in paragraph 4)

Nov 30 (Reuters) - Cameroon hopes to triple electricity output to 3,000 MW by 2020 through a series of hydro and thermal generation projects, the government said this month.

The move is aimed at increasing public access to power in the West African coastal nation while also paving the way to expand the energy-intensive mining sector.

Below is a list of investment projects in a country aiming to further develop its energy and mineral resources and expand its ports:

ALUMINIUM, BAUXITE

- Rio Tinto Alcan is a partner with Cameroon's government in Alucam, an operation scheduled to include a 1 million tonne aluminium smelter at Kribi. Rio has said the project, including a 1,000 megawatt hydroelectric dam to power the smelter, will cost 140 billion CFA francs ($317.6 million). Construction timeline is 2015-18.

- U.S. firm Hydromines, the United Arab Emirates's Dubai Aluminium (DUBAL) and India's Hindalco Industries have formed Cameroon Alumina Limited (CAL), a bauxite mining operation. The consortium says it has found 550 million tonnes of bauxite and is targeting at least another 200 million tonnes.

With start-up planned for 2013, the consortium plans to invest $5-6 billion in a bauxite mining and refinery project at Ngaoundal, north of the capital, Yaounde, and a railway linking the project to the port of Kribi, 860 km away. The expected bauxite output is 4.5-9 million tonnes per annum.

COBALT

- Toronto-listed Geovic owns 60 percent of a nickel-cobalt-manganese project in Nkamouna, in eastern Cameroon. Geovic expects to produce 4,200 tonnes of cobalt per year and 2,100 tonnes of nickel per year for 21 years. But Geovic said in early 2009 production would be delayed until 2012 and investment was cut to $250 million from $370 million.

IRON ORE

- Australia's Sundance Resources has an exploration permit for the Mbalam deposits. Sundance was scheduled to begin exporting iron ore from its $2.46 billion project by 2011 but the firm is involved in tax wrangles with the government and announced in November that production would be delayed to 2013 due to the global slowdown. Reserves are estimated at roughly 2.5 billion tonnes, including 2.325 billion tonnes of itabirite hematite and 215 million tonnes of high grade hematite.

Once operational, Sundance hopes to produce some 35 million tonnes of ore per year, bringing in $5 billion in royalties, taxes, and dividends during the 25-year life of the mine.

- The UK's African Aura Mining Inc. is exploring its 100 percent owned Nkout iron project located at Djoum in southern Cameroon, adjacent to Sundance's Mbalam project.

- Australia's Legend Mining Limited in September 2009 acquired a 90 percent interest in two exploration permits covering an area of approximately 2,400 km2 after it obtained 90 percent ownership of Camina (Cameroon Mining Action) SA.

URANIUM

- Nu Energy Corporation, a subsidiary of Canada's Mega Uranium, is exploring for uranium in two sites in the north and the south of the country. After initial positive results in September, the firm is planning a follow-up 2,000 metre drill programme in the Kitongo project in the north.

GOLD

- African Aura Mining Inc. is drilling at the Kambele prospect of its 100 percent owned Batouri gold exploration licence in the East region where the company has recorded visible gold in 25 out of 44 holes drilled.

DIAMONDS

- C&K Mining Inc, a joint Cameroon-Korean company operating near the border with Congo-Republic, is due to begin mining in 2010 with output to be 1 million carats in the first year and expected to reach 6 million carats a year at peak production.

OIL

- UK Sterling Energy has the offshore Ntem block in the Kribi-Campo sub-basin, where it says it has identified four prospects with a cumulative potential in excess of 1.5 billion barrels. Sterling is seeking farm-in partners.

- China's Yan Chang Logone Development Holding Company Ltd has signed a $62 million production sharing contract to explore for oil on the onshore Zina and Makary blocks in the North.

- Malaysia's Petronas and Noble Energy have a $119 million deal to explore for oil on the Tilapia block offshore the Douala/Kribi-Campo basin which has estimated reserves of 40-70 million barrels.

- France's Total-E&P and Swiss firm Glencore are operating separate explorations offshore in the Rio del Rey basin. Glencore and South African-based Afex Global Ltd signed a $38 million deal for oil exploration on the Matanda block offshore the Doual/Kribi-Campo basin.

GAS

- Cameroon has gas reserves estimated at over 500 billion cubic meters and Franco-Belgian group Suez Global LNG Ltd has signed a memorandum of understanding with it to look into developing liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects.

- Victoria Oil & Gas Plc owns a 60 percent share in the Logbaba gas and condensate project located in Douala. The company has four exploration wells and plans to apply for a 35-year exploitation and exploration licence. It said on Nov. 16 it discovered gas sands on the site that could boost the field's reserves.

POWER

- Cameroon plans to some spend 6 trillion CFA francs ($13.73 billion) to increase electricity output from 1,000 MW to 3,000 MW by 2020 through construction of hydroelectric dams and thermal power plants, the government announced in November. The effort is seen as key to expanding the energy-intensive mining industry.

Among the biggest of the projects, the Lom Pangar dam has received financial pledges amounting to 176 billion CFA from backers like the African Development Bank, the World Bank, Standard Chartered Bank Cameroon, Afriland First Bank, European Invest Bank, Saudi Fund, and the Central African States Development Bank. Construction of Lom Pangar is scheduled to start in 2012.

PORTS

- Douala handles 95 percent of the import and export traffic from Cameroon, as well as land-locked neighbours Chad and Central African Republic but capacity is constrained by silting.

- Negotiations are ongoing for a final selection of private partners for construction work to start in March 2010 at the $655 million new multi-purpose Kribi deep seaport to accommodate larger ships. Cameroon is seeking foreign partners to build an $830 million second deep seaport at Limbe in the south-west. ((Dakar Newsroom +221 338645076)) ($1=437.1 Cfa Franc)